Photography: Mindi Cooke / Styling: Tahn Scoon
When ceramic artist Cinnamon, her husband Scott and their children, Tide, 17, and Minty, 15, started to outgrow the ’70s worker’s cottage the couple had owned for nearly 20 years, they had to decide whether to renovate or move. Renovation won out, as they realised how much they loved the village feel of their northern Gold Coast suburb.
“It’s hard to replace that sense of community,” says Cinnamon. “It’s close to Scott’s work, the kids’ schools – and, importantly for me, only a two-minute walk to good coffee!”
Who lives here?
Cinnamon, a ceramic artist, and Scott, a business owner, their son Tide, 17, and daughter Minty, 15; and Rupert the Whippet.
Did you start with a vision board? Cinnamon: “No, we really just wanted a home that helped us feel calm and grounded, so based every design and purchase decision with that in mind.”
What drew you to ceramics? “There’s something about the earthiness of the clay that is very meditative.”
Best thing about working from home? “The house shares a similar aesthetic to my work, so it’s easy to feel inspired!”
Anything you’d do differently? “I’d never choose louvred windows again, they’re too hard to clean. We’ve replaced quite a few already.”
The plan was to retain the aesthetic of the single level, pitched roof cottage but add a second storey to house the bedrooms. Unfortunately, height restrictions dictated otherwise, and the best solution resulted in a flat roof. “This completely changed the look of the home,” says Cinnamon. “It was now a big white box, which needed softening, so we added oversized window boxes for hanging plants, and the aesthetic grew from there.”
Also high on the list were separate bathrooms for teenagers, Tide and Minty. “Giving them their own space makes mornings much more peaceful,” says Cinnamon. “And that was actually our guiding star for the entire process. We wanted a home that was filled with natural light, organic textures, and a neutral colour palette to promote calm at the end of a chaotic day.”
Living area
The front living room is furnished in ‘Judd’ linen sofas from MCM House, a side table sourced from Maison & Maison and a table made by a friend many years ago. Cinnamon kept the styling and colour palette restrained with ‘Crossier’ linen cushions and a raw timber chapati bowl from St Barts along with white ceramics and white artwork by Andclay.co.
Kitchen
Renovating also gave the couple a chance to contemplate what they wanted as a family and to design the house accordingly. Cinnamon says a good example is the spacious kitchen with its hardy sintered stone benchtops. “You would presume we designed it for cooking in, but it’s mostly used for building ceramics. I love to sit at the bench in the evening and chat to everyone as I work. There’s plenty of space for drying clay, and the tiles make clean up a breeze.”
The kitchen features a Neolith Strata Argentum benchtop from CDK Stone made from 100 per cent natural materials, that is heat-, stain-, and UV-resistant. “It looks like real silver travertine marble but is much easier to maintain – and I love the tactile, chalky finish,” says Cinnamon.
Dining area
The sun-drenched dining area features full-length certified eco linen curtains by LVH Byron Bay. “We never have them closed, but I love them for their softness and the way they draw attention to the ceiling height, I can’t imagine the room without them,” shares Cinnamon. The dining table was made by a friend decades ago and the dining chairs were sourced from James Rui. “It was hard to find a rug big enough I liked at a good price, so I ended up grabbing two sisal rugs from Freedom and just placing them together.”
“The ceiling height is one of my favourite things about the house.”
– Cinnamon
Main bedroom
Cinnamon’s love for simplicity spills into the pared back bedroom with a rendered half wall purposed as the couple’s bedhead and a timber ‘Tonk’ stool from MCM House, used as a bedside table.
“I was quite happy for the master bedroom to be quite bare, quite minimal. But it almost looked too bare until I added the curtains around the bed,” says Cinnamon. To create this version of a canopy bed, she sourced Uniqwa Eucalyptus Latte Poles from James Rui and attached them onto the ceiling before draping them with generous layers of linen. Curtains custom made by LVH Byron Bay.
We love… canopy curtains
Ensuite
The north-facing ensuite in the main bedroom opens onto the balcony garden. “The light is always really beautiful, especially in the mornings when you get these amazing shadows,” says Cinnamon. Stone ‘Bianca’ basins and a ‘Ryese’ bath, all in Ivory Stone, from Pietra Bianca create a spa-like ambience.
Pool area
The backyard also got a makeover; blue ceramic pool tiles were replaced with Sukabumi natural stone in a gentle green hue, and a daybed that looks like it’s suspended over the water has been added. An original ’70s copper fireplace and decked seating area provides a cosy nook in cooler months and a sweet garden studio allows Cinnamon a quiet spot to throw clay.
