With its challenges over lock down in Melbourne - Corinne transformed an original 1960's home on the Mornington Peninsula into a coastal getaway! They were finally able to complete the project early this year after some delays with the help of her brother-in-law Michael. Flooded with warm tones and texture, the Newport matt white subway was the perfect choice for this little beach side shack!
What spaces did you renovate?
We did a full renovation. We bought this house May 2020 during the pandemic, it was an original 1960’s fibro beach shack! We had in mind that if we renovated it we could rent it out for holiday rentals and use it ourselves in the quieter periods as a weekend getaway. It’s located in Rye on The Mornington Peninsula, Victoria.
What motivated you to renovate?
The house itself was fine and fully functional as it currently had a tenant, however I just not could handle all the mission brown and orange tiles! I knew we could make some great improvements with little cost and make it a space where people could feel at home.
Were you living here at the time of your renovations?
No we were not living here which was great because we have 2 kids under 6 so would have been a nightmare! We had no kitchen or toilet for some time.
How would you describe your style?
Yes, I would say my style for this house is definitely ‘boho coastal’. I just love the fresh clean look and the beachy vibe inside this home.
Talk us through the process you took in the planning stages of the renovation!
Wow, yes I could definitely say that I developed a bit of an obsession with Pinterest during the design and planning stage of this renovation. I started creating mood boards for the look and feel of the whole house and then individual boards for each room.
Corinnes Moodboard
Were there any delays? How long did the renovation take?
Because there were several lockdowns in Victoria last year, works were delayed so the renovation ended up taking 6 months. Works were on and off during these periods when we were able to travel down there. There was a huge rush to get our kitchen in right on the cusp of lockdown commencing so our lovely kitchen installer from Ballarat, ended up sleeping here the night on the floor to get the job completed with no heating and power during winter!
What was the most challenging part of the renovation? Did anything go wrong? How did you adapt?
I think the bathroom was definitely the most challenging. The bathroom was tiny only approx. 1.5m x1.7m, i decided we needed to knock out the adjoining wall to the separate toilet to make the room much more functional. Even still it’s not a huge bathroom approx. 2.7 x 1.7m but we now have a huge walk in shower and a 900mm vanity which was the goal! The hardest part was rebuilding the floor for the walk in shower and all the tiling - the house has seen a bit of movement over the years with the sandy soil (being so close to the beach) so the walls weren’t even!
Were you juggling a career as well as overlooking the renovations?
It was actually ok, funnily enough it kept me sane, because it was during the pandemic so it really gave me something positive to focus on and all that painting became my meditation!
Did you and your partner or family butt heads over the design at all?
No, lucky for me my husband is not really a hands on “tradie” kind of guy so that worked out well - I was able to take charge while he looked after the kids.
Did you come into the TileCloud showroom to look around at tiles? Did you order samples?
Actually no, the whole renovation everything was purchased online during the lockdown. Because we are in Victoria we didn’t visit a showroom and I didn’t order samples. I knew exactly what I wanted as I had seen several bathrooms on Pinterest already with these tiles so I knew they would work out well.
Why did you choose TileCloud / What did you enjoy best about the TileCloud experience?
TileCloud has a fantastic website, so being able to search for products and see what they look like in the photos is really helpful. I was also able to call their support to ask questions about the product before ordering which was great!
Any advice for first time renovators?
Yes, I do have a couple of things I would do differently if I had the chance. Always measure twice and don’t ever compromise on pantry space!
What did you hire trades for and what did you do yourselves or with help of family and friends?
We were really lucky with our trades, and I don’t honestly think we would of bought this house if we didn’t have them there to help.
My brother in law (Michael) did most of the work as he is a builder and tiler. We saved a fortune using family and being able to ponder over different ideas together made all the difference in the overall design – e.g the layout of the bathroom and the pattern of the tiles.
Photographer credit: Axiom Photography
