Australian Country Homes

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography KEN BRASS A passion for gardening is practically in the DNA of Jan Owens, who has devoted the better part of the past decade to transforming a bare paddock into a showpiece garden at Willawa, the property she shares wi

Penny Hanan combined her father’s vision, her brother’s acumen and her own elegant aesthetic to create a range of accessories that showcases the talents of a variety of Australian artisans. by KIRSTY MCKENZIE photography KEN BRASS The old saying that

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography KEN BRASS Like many life-altering decisions, Dorothy Barlow’s return to Australia was a long time in foment, but swift in execution. She was living the dream in Italy, working for fashion designer and style guru Rossan

story & styling by TAHN SCOON photography JOHN DOWNS As you drive west along Brisbane’s busy Waterworks Rd, eventually the heavy traffic lessens and the urban views give way to hilly vistas. You’re still in the city, only 10 kilometres from the CBD,

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography KEN BRASS As first impressions go, it’s hard to beat the entrance to All Saints winery near Rutherglen in north-eastern Victoria. The road is lined with an avenue of 120-year-old elm trees that reveal at the end the sp

by KIM WOODS RABBIDGE photography BY JOHN DOWNS Occasionally, a landscape steals your breath away. When Robert Maas sips tea on the deck at Skylodge, his contemporary Mount Tamborine homestead, he still marvels at the ever-changing ocean to the east

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE photography ROSS WILLIAMS styling BRONTE CAMILLERI As a child growing up in Adelaide, there was never enough paper for Andrew Munn to satisfy his prodigious appetite for painting and drawing. Nothing was sacred; the blank front pag

by TAMARA SIMONEAU photography ANASTASIA KARIOFYLLIDIS Live life to the fullest … for most of us that’s a nice sentiment on a greeting card or a lofty goal set ambitiously at the outset of a new year. For Kate Pilcher, it’s the only way to be — it’s

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography KEN BRASS When Michelle Simons “went browsing” for the perfect site for her new life in the country, her shopping list had very specific requirements. It had to be within 15 minutes of services and a decent cup of coff

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography KEN BRASS During the best part of two decades living overseas, management consultants Kailash Attawar and Melinda Waters have roamed across some of the world’s more exotic locales. Their home addresses have ranged from

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography KEN BRASS When Ian and Helen Cathles bought the 7500-acre (3000-hectare) Cooradigbee station at Wee Jasper in the NSW Brindabella Ranges, everyone told them the historic pisé homestead was beyond salvation. Built in 19

by MERYL HANCOCK, photography ROSS WILLIAMS, styling BRONTE CAMILLERI Admittedly their checklist for a long-term retirement project was large — period house, sprawling gardens, stables, an arbour, but the most essential requirement for Andrew and Pet

by SIOBHAN O’BRIEN photography STEFANIE LEES Blow-to-the-solar-plexus views pan over a luminous Lake Jindabyne and up to the Snowy Mountains range beyond. A mature, tree-filled garden that is golden honeycomb in autumn and rose scented in spring. Ele

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE photography KEN BRASS A picture may be worth a thousand words, but the portrait of William Dawson Grubb that hangs in the hallway at Strathroy in northern Tasmania is but an opening gambit on the life of an extraordinary man and hi

by ALICE GRIFFIN Barbecues, beach trips and bush walks; Australia’s national psyche is born in the outdoors. It is only right, then, that our homes and gardens cater to this. A mild climate means we can make good use of our outdoor space throughout m

by KIRSTY MCKENZIE, photography ROSS WILLIAMS, styling BRONTE CAMILLERI They say home is where the heart is. After decades of living and working all over the UK, Europe, the US and Asia, not to mention in four Australian cities, Deb and Scott McKay r