Photography: Chris Warnes
Surrounded by roses, azaleas, camellias and deciduous trees that echo the gardens of their youth, Ian and Eileen discovered a surprising sanctuary and second home in the Blue Mountains. Their weekender, La Vista, originally bought for occasional escapes from city life, became a full-time refuge when the pandemic arrived. “Working from home allowed us to spend the majority of our time here and that motivated us to renovate,” they say.
Who lives here?
Couple Ian and Eileen, both retired.
Why did you choose your architect and interior designer? “The warmth they expressed for La Vista gave us a lot of confidence. When you have an old home, you can feel quite protective about it – and we wanted to make sure changes made would honour, improve and elevate.”
Looking back, what was the best decision you made? “This project is the accumulation of hundreds of great decisions. We had input from a team of talented experts and following their advice led to so many ‘best decisions’.”
What was your biggest learning? “Patience. It will cost more than you want and take longer than they said it would but you will forget all that if you get the right outcome.”
Now retired, the couple divides their time between their Sydney residence and the mountain retreat. “We wanted to make La Vista a comfortable place for people to come and stay awhile,” they explain. The inviting heritage-listed house had many original features still intact, yet there was no intention to transform it into a museum. “We didn’t want a period restoration,” they say. Instead, the goal was to honour the home’s bones while adapting it for contemporary life.
Built in 1913 for Sydney drapery magnate William Buckingham and set within a garden laid out in 1928 by renowned designer Paul Sorensen, La Vista carries layers of history. The kitchen and bathrooms had last been updated in the 1980s or earlier, and the connection between house and garden was strangely awkward.
Architects Andrew Burns and Nicholas Bucci of Architecture AND were engaged to carefully restore the heritage exterior, redesign the kitchen and bathrooms, and create a new outdoor entertaining pavilion. One small but transformative move was the new stairs extending from the verandah into the garden. “Prior to this, the house felt very disconnected from the garden – as though the garden was something to look at instead of spend time within,” Andrew says. Now, garden wanderings are part of daily life.
Rather than replicate the house, the pavilion was conceived as something deliberately distinct, designed to sit harmoniously with the environment and embrace elemental cooking. “This arose through discussion with the clients, who saw the pavilion as offering a contrast to the heritage house – something quite different in tone, and an opportunity to amplify the experiential qualities of La Vista,” he explains.
Builder Ben Schofield from Tesseract Construction was engaged to bring the vision to life, while interior designer Lily Cumberland, who had previously worked with the couple on their Sydney home, helped thread old and new together inside. “They were keen for the interiors to feel authentic and grounded, rather than overly referential to a single period,” she says. Existing furniture from a former San Francisco apartment was layered into rooms rich with wallpaper and texture. “The result is a series of interiors that feel confident and expressive, yet connected.”
The garden continues to evolve through careful stewardship rather than reinvention. Stone paths were restored using matching sandstone, and planting decisions respect Sorensen’s original vision. “As everybody knows, the work in a garden is effectively infinite and we spend as much time on it as we can,” Ian and Eileen say, now focusing on a productive working garden and greenhouse. La Vista is what they hoped for. “Seeing the doors of the pavilion flung open, folks returning from a bushwalk, slipping into the hot tub with an ice cold beer, while the happy buzz of prep gets underway for that evening’s wood-fired feast – these make the journey worth it.”
Living room
A geometric carpet runs through the sitting room, library, main hallway and two bedrooms. It was inspired by floors in boutique hotel Castle Elvira in Italy and custom designed by Lily Cumberland. It picks up the Porter’s Paints Mariner hue in the cofferred ceiling and Temperley London x Romo ‘Lavinia’ wallcovering in Slate from Romo. Lounges were recovered in Mokum by Catherine Martin ‘Medina’ fabric in Pearl from James Dunlop Textiles, and the cushions made from Romo ‘Fantasia’ velvet in Eclipse and Romo ‘Bonita’ in Goldfinch. An Arteriors ‘Morten’ pendant from Boyd Blue hangs above with a Timothy Oulton ‘Night Rod’ floor lamp from Coco Republic by the curtains, in Nettex ‘Brunswick’ fabric in Talc and Nettex ‘Lafayette’ in Navy. Coffee table from Room & Board.
Kitchen
The kitchen features a curved Briggs ‘Grey Ironbark’ Quarter Cut veneer island with Taj Mahal quartzite benchtop, also on the splashback. Tap is Brodware ‘Winslow’ pullout kitchen mixer in Aged Iron. A Muuto ‘Ambit’ rail pendant in Dusty Green illuminates the workspace. Joinery is hand-painted in Porter’s Paints Salt Bush. The stools came with the house and have been restored and re-stained. Floors are Eco Outdoor Technifirma ‘Ambrose’ from Eco Outdoor.
Dining
The dining room features original floors. “Rather than lightening them, we chose to re-stain the timber to closely match the original panelling in the adjoining sitting room, so the spaces would feel visually connected,” explains Lily. On the wall is ‘Tumble and Fall’ artwork by Bobbie Burgers. A ‘Piazetta’ brass chandelier from James Said hangs over a ‘Classique’ dining table from Boyd Blue with chairs from Hickory Chair Furniture Co. Hand-knotted ‘Ibri’ rug from Tappeti.
Bedrooms
This guest bedroom features an Aerin ‘Hampton’ pendant in Gild, which sets the tone for this pretty yet glamorous space. French doors are framed by curtains made in Nettex ‘Brunswick’ fabric in Talc and Nettex ‘Lafayette’ in Mushroom. The bedhead is custom made in James Dunlop ‘Heritage’ fabric in Natural from James Dunlop Textiles, with a Morgan & Finch ‘Reid’ coverlet in Oatmeal and cushions made with Romo ‘Chiraco 7977’ fabric in Sorbet on the bed. In the corner stands a Coco Republic ‘Sloane’ armchair. Visual Comfort ‘Mia’ table lamp from Bloomingdales Lighting. Other pieces have been collected over time.
We love… original details
This guest bedroom had details too good not to preserve in the historical property, including the wallpaper. “It’s original and we really wanted to keep it! It needed a bit of repair work but looks stunning,” says Lily. The original French doors also underwent a significant restoration, while the wall panelling was retained and repainted in Porter’s Paints Cashmere.
Sanderson x Giles Deacon ‘Andromeda’s Cup’ wallpaper brings Victorian flair to the guest bedroom, picking up the tones in the Porter’s Paints Cashmere on the walls and Sheridan ‘Felwick’ bedcover. The table and chair, room divider and rug are Ian and Eileen’s antiques. The paint colour on the vanity was matched to the tiles and paired with a Taj Mahal quartzite benchtop. Brodware ‘Winslow’ tapware.
Main ensuite
The main ensuite is swathed in green, with Skheme ‘Parq’ tiles in Juniper Matt around a custom cast-iron bath from Nu-Pride, painted in a specialist paint to give a rust effect.
Pavilion
Architecture AND designed the pavilion in full, with a focus on elemental cooking and inclusion of a wood-fire oven and Argentinian grill. Inside, the Briggs ‘Cedar’ veneer joinery is tonal with the cedar board ceiling. A Piazzetta pellet heater adds to the cosiness. The exterior of the pavilion stands in harmony with the environment, with a Colorbond Custom Orb roof in Monument and Silvertop Ash shiplap cladding
in Aqualis Black Japan and blackbutt sliding door. Custom table by Timber Two and Coco Republic ‘Melrose’ stools.
“There’s something about an open corner that feels special. It creates a sense of expansion”
Garden
The fountain is believed to be part of La Vista’s original landscaping, with the pond restored more recently and new benches added. “We’re sensitive to the garden’s heritage designation and took advice from a number of specialist garden consultants, including Chris Betteridge, who sadly passed away before he was able to return to see his influence on the outcome,” say Ian and Eileen.
Source Book
Architecture Architecture AND, architecture-and.au.
Interior design Lily Cumberland Interior Design, lilycumberland.com.Builder Tesseract Construction, tesseractconstruction.com.au.
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