LOUNGE, OTTOMAN, DESIGNED BY LYNN MALONE WITH DEREK MARCH FROM JADE UPHOLSTERY. LYNN MALONE, 0408 772 880
HB HOME
made in
australia
Inspired by our landscape and
home-grown design, this new
apartment is high on style
STYLING LISA HILTON
PHOTOGRAPHY MICHAEL WEE
STORY KAREN FITTALL
Master of illusion: a neutral palette in the living
room splashed with brilliant colour, and cheeky
features, such as the door-to-nowhere on the
balcony, combine to make a cosy apartment feel
more expansive. The artwork is by Brad Munro.
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Sunburnt country: Lynn chose two fabric designs
from Cloth to dress the dining room chairs and
bench. The prints, designed by Julie Paterson,
were inspired by the Australian landscape. The
three artworks are by Luke Sciberrus.
How did you create a colour palette that
appears neutral and bold at the same time?
Lynn: The look we wanted to create was one of
sophistication, so we selected a beige/white palette with
splashes of colour, such as the red accent wall in the study/
media room. Then we contrasted the white backdrop with
wenge timber joinery – it was all inspired by the Australian
landscape. We also knew that we wanted to feature an
Australian art collection and textural upholstery fabrics to
enhance the livability of the apartment, so a relatively
neutral colour scheme worked well as a backdrop to that.
The wenge ‘fireplace’ is extremely effective
– why does it work so well?
The shelves are ideal to display artwork, favoured books
or pictures, and the under-shelf halogen lighting means
they’re showed to their full potential. But the joinery also
serves another purpose because it conceals the cables and
wiring that’s necessary for the Bose sound system that has
been installed throughout the house.
Where is your favourite space?
Probably the kitchen because it lends itself beautifully to
entertaining at home, but I also love the ‘garden room’
– also known as the balcony. It’s a very deep, usable space
that invites guests to move from indoors to out. And did I
mention the view! It’s an uninterrupted north-facing vista
across parklands and to the working harbour of Sydney.
What more could you ask for?
JOINERY, ARTEMA JOINERY. FABRIC ON DINING CHAIRS, CLOTH
ABOVE Easy on the eye: using the neutral palette on
joinery, the open kitchen blends unobtrusively with the
living area. BELOW Subtle halogen lights illuminate vases
on floating wenge shelves. The painting is by Mark Munro.
h
Here’s a place that more than lives up to the ‘great
things’ promise. Yep, it may be an apartment, but
don’t be fooled – a combination of clever design and
canny features have turned this two-bedroom, twobathroom space in Sydney’s Knox on Bowman building
on the harbour’s edge into a surprisingly spacious –
and truly special – place to spend time. We asked the
apartment’s interior designer, Lynn Malone, for a sneak
peek into her design inspiration – and grabbed a few insider
tips and tricks along the way.
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Apartments are often space challenged for
storage – how does this one rate?
Each bedroom has large wardrobes with shelves and ample
hanging space, but we made sure we included several welldesigned cupboards in other spots. The kitchen is a real
‘cook’s kitchen’ with plenty of storage, and in the guest
bathroom, there’s an area that has storage for linen, but is
also a broom closet and a laundry room, all in one. Then
there’s more storage out on the balcony, with a dedicated
‘room’ for garden tools and equipment.
What are the advantages of using custommade furniture and fittings?
Who says a home office
has to be dull? This
striking use of wenge
timber as a floating
desk makes paperwork
a joy to complete.
You not only end up with a collection of unique pieces, but
you can also achieve exactly the look that you’re after. A
good compromise can be to do what I did with the chair in
the master bedroom. I bought an unfinished chair frame,
then commissioned John Quirk, a specialty painter and
furniture decorator, to custom paint it in an aluminum leaf
finish, rubbed with ‘black red’ paint. The result reminds me
of someone’s favourite piece of furniture that they’ve had
refinished to give it new life and vitality.
The dining table seating is unconventional
– what was your inspiration?
The thing to remember is that dining seating doesn’t have
to be limited to chairs. In this apartment, the upholstered
bench seating is ideal for a couple of reasons. Firstly, when
you’re standing in the kitchen, looking over the dining table
towards the harbour view, it reduces the chair backs you
have to look over. Secondly, because the bench seats two
or three guests comfortably, it’s multifunctional and can be
moved to the lounge room area if extra seating is needed.
STUDY/MEDIA
ENTRY
KITCHEN
BATH
DINING
BATH
Deep reflection: a clever clustering of nine mirrors softens
the red of the feature wall in the study/media room. “Getting
the space between the mirrors exact is crucial,” says Lynn.
“If you’re not confident, employ a professional to install them.”
The mirrors were framed by the Michael Commerford Gallery.
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COFFEE TABLE, RIBBON CHAIR, BOTH MONDO TRASHO
Advice for decorating an apartment?
I think it’s much the same whether you’re dealing with a
house or an apartment – remember that it’s your home,
so you should aim towards creating an environment that
enhances your lifestyle and suits your individual needs. I
would also tell people to remember that less is more, and
always buy the best finish or furniture you can afford.
W/R
BED
MAIN BED
LIVING
What sort of lifestyle were you envisaging
when you designed this apartment?
It’s predominantly for professional couples, perhaps
relocating from larger, family homes, but who still require
similar standards of luxurious space, privacy and security.
The Knox on Bowman building is in Lend Lease’s Jacksons
Landing development.
BALCONY
HB HOME
the bedhead
Bedheads are nothing new, but big, bold red ones are anything
but run-of-the-mill. “The inspiration for that concept came from
the celebrated café Yellow Bistro in Potts Point,” explains Lynn.
“In the main dining room there is a beautifully upholstered
square-panelled wall in a hot-pink, textured silk. When I first saw
it I immediately thought ‘what a great concept for a headboard’.”
Featuring six rectangular panels upholstered in a red oxide natural
hemp from Cloth, the piece was crafted by Derek Marsh from Jade
Upholstery. A similar design would cost between $500 and $1000,
depending on size. ■
We asked interior designer Lynn Malone,
who designed this apartment, to share
her five favourite tips
1
Fit a door to nowhere A clever way to give the
impression of more space is to install a door that
actually goes nowhere – as Lynn has done outside on
the balcony. Taking advantage of the Jacksons Landing site’s
history as an old sugar refinery, Lynn found an old red door
from the distillery and used it as a feature wall on the
balcony. “The idea is to give the viewer the impression that
the door may lead to another indoor or outdoor room. It’s a
thought-starter – a trick-of-the-eye which gives a new
dimension to a plain wall.”
ABOVE In mid air: floating bedside tables, pendant lights by
Sinseo and large mirrors give an airy, clean feel to the main
bedroom. BELOW Lynn’s talents included the upholstering and
painting of this chair (with a little help from John Quirk).
It’s now a unique accent piece that completes the room.
2
Choose floating furniture If you’re low on space,
floating furniture is a good choice because it creates
the feeling of more floor space. In this apartment,
Malone has used the concept in both the bedroom with
bedside tables, and in the study/media room, where she has
included an in-built study nook-cum-desk.
3
Source feature pieces of furniture While Lynn is a
subscriber to the ‘less is more’ philosophy, she also
suggests choosing a handful of key furniture pieces to
add interest – even if it means hunting for them. “In this
apartment, my favourite pieces are the 1950s coffee table,
which has a black vitrolite glass inset and was designed by
an unknown Australian furniture designer, and the desk chair
in the study/media room. It’s called the Ribbon chair and
was manufactured in Italy in the 1980s. I discovered both
pieces at the 20th-century furniture store Mondo Trasho
in Melbourne on a Sunday afternoon walking excursion.”
4
5
Opt for design that’s both beautiful and functional
Ask Lynn which is more important – form or function –
and she’ll tell you to strive for a combination of both.
“That’s why I love the wenge timber joinery in the living
room. It’s a beautiful piece, but it also has a job to do, acting
as a mask for all the sound system wiring.”
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BED LINEN, MIO PALAZZO
Install a faux fireplace A wood-burning fireplace was
never going to work in an apartment, but Malone still
wanted the romance that goes hand-in-hand with
cosying up next to a fire in winter. The solution? A stainlesssteel EcoSmart fire that doesn’t require ventilation and goes
against convention by burning methylated spirits rather than
gas or wood, but still throws out plenty of warmth.
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