My Houzz: Neutrals Add a Calm Vibe to a Coastal Haven
A family living near the beach in southern Australia creates a light and bright oasis on a limited budget
When searching for a new home, a person needs the skill to be able to look past the garish, dated features of a house and see what it could become. This serene, white and light-filled coastal townhouse near the beach on Australia’s Mornington Peninsula initially had a Tuscan yellow exterior and a dated interior. However, Michelle and Gary Woods and their daughter, Macey, knew how great it could be.
Michelle — the owner of Mich and Mace, a stall selling vintage and upcycled furniture and accessories in The Vintage Shed antiques complex — had a vision of fashioning a white nautical haven. Gary is handy and helped with the DIY jobs. Together, with a lot of elbow grease, the Woodses created their dream home on a limited budget.
Michelle — the owner of Mich and Mace, a stall selling vintage and upcycled furniture and accessories in The Vintage Shed antiques complex — had a vision of fashioning a white nautical haven. Gary is handy and helped with the DIY jobs. Together, with a lot of elbow grease, the Woodses created their dream home on a limited budget.
First they wanted to change the layout. The kitchen was in the middle of what is now the downstairs living room, which didn’t suit the family. Gary did a lot of the work himself, but he also received help from Michelle’s brother, uncle and the couple’s friends.
The other challenge when the family initially moved in was the bad lighting and garish color. “I couldn’t see at night with all the orange,” Michelle says. “One day, I came home from work and found that Gary had blanked it all out with an undercoat — it was the best present ever!” The palette of the house is now white. “I start with white, then add color, but my color is normally neutral too. As much as I want to add color, I can’t live with it.”
The couple also enjoy upcycling furniture when possible. Gary upcycled an inexpensive console table for the living room by taking off the laminate top and painting the black metal legs white. He added two pieces of vintage wood as a top. “It looks amazing and is one of my favorite treasures,” Michelle says.
The other challenge when the family initially moved in was the bad lighting and garish color. “I couldn’t see at night with all the orange,” Michelle says. “One day, I came home from work and found that Gary had blanked it all out with an undercoat — it was the best present ever!” The palette of the house is now white. “I start with white, then add color, but my color is normally neutral too. As much as I want to add color, I can’t live with it.”
The couple also enjoy upcycling furniture when possible. Gary upcycled an inexpensive console table for the living room by taking off the laminate top and painting the black metal legs white. He added two pieces of vintage wood as a top. “It looks amazing and is one of my favorite treasures,” Michelle says.
Original sand-swirled walls would have needed to be replastered, but the Woodses knew they wanted wood-paneled walls, and Gary did the work himself. The new style was expensive but felt nautical and fresh, and suited the house and family.
“These days, it costs so much more to get this look, but you can now get it by using panels which are white-primed — a great option to have the same look without all the priming yourself,” Michelle says.
“These days, it costs so much more to get this look, but you can now get it by using panels which are white-primed — a great option to have the same look without all the priming yourself,” Michelle says.
The living room is a comfortable place for the family to relax in. Michelle opted for big, solid furniture since the furniture she brought from the old home got lost in the room, she says.
Michelle and Gary painted and hung barn-door rollers with French doors from Manon Bis. This made a boring entrance facing the laundry and understair area feel grand.
Michelle and Gary painted and hung barn-door rollers with French doors from Manon Bis. This made a boring entrance facing the laundry and understair area feel grand.
This office is connected to the living room and is Michelle’s favorite room in the house. It was originally a bedroom, but the couple decided it was a better use of space to turn it into an office.
“It was dark green for a long time. Then one day, I said, ‘Let’s paint it!’ The vintage color was beautiful but just stood out. Keeping it white and simple was the way to go here,” Michelle says.
The warehouse light was one Michelle had for years, and she enlisted help to get it working again. Michelle upcycled the fabric cord from an old iron.
“It was dark green for a long time. Then one day, I said, ‘Let’s paint it!’ The vintage color was beautiful but just stood out. Keeping it white and simple was the way to go here,” Michelle says.
The warehouse light was one Michelle had for years, and she enlisted help to get it working again. Michelle upcycled the fabric cord from an old iron.
Michelle’s vintage treasures are mixed with more modern pieces, including these baskets and accessories from Provincial Home Living.
Michelle already had many of the items on display. “I have been a vintage collector for a long time, so it was great to be able to use pieces in this house.”
Gary altered shutters found at the Outlook recycled-goods shop to fit four of their windows, including the ones in Macey’s room.
Macey had outgrown her childhood bedroom in their previous home but was not really a fan of the vintage feel of the rest of the house, so she and Michelle shopped at Ikea, Typo and Kmart for youthful, budget-friendly items to create this teen retreat.
Although Macey’s room has a slightly more contemporary feel than the rest of the home, it features the same color palette of white with natural elements.
Macey loves her room.
The wood-paneled walls in Macey’s room are the only ones in the house that run horizontally. It’s a small room, and the horizontal lines makes the space feel larger.
The small downstairs bathroom was one of the hardest rooms to renovate. The couple put a niche in the shower and took the tiles up to the ceiling to make it feel grand. Gary cut down an old table to make the vanity, and they picked up a small white bowl sink on sale at Bunnings for about $75.
“It is such a narrow room, but it feels so good now. It would have cost so much more to retile and change the base, so we are really happy with the result,” Michelle says.
“It is such a narrow room, but it feels so good now. It would have cost so much more to retile and change the base, so we are really happy with the result,” Michelle says.
The small but practical laundry sits next to a large closet that provides understair storage.
The upstairs area of the townhouse is an open-plan living, dining and kitchen area, with a large balcony. The master bedroom and main bathroom are here too.
Michelle loves having the kitchen upstairs, as she says it makes her feel as if she’s in a treehouse. She also says it’s easy to clean and perfect for entertaining.
The family wanted a more nautical style for the kitchen cabinets, but changing them was too expensive at the time. So they removed and cleaned them, painted them matte white, and swapped industrial-style chunky handles for the original curved ones.
Removing unused upper cabinets along a side wall opened up the kitchen. Installing a window in their place let in more natural light.
The family wanted a more nautical style for the kitchen cabinets, but changing them was too expensive at the time. So they removed and cleaned them, painted them matte white, and swapped industrial-style chunky handles for the original curved ones.
Removing unused upper cabinets along a side wall opened up the kitchen. Installing a window in their place let in more natural light.
Michelle loves mixing styles from industrial to French, coastal and vintage. Lately, she has been inspired by the shop Greedilulu, which stocks decor in South African style, and she decorates with pieces from it, including this necklace.
Michelle purchased two armoires from Scout House before she moved in and put them in the dining area. “I knew they would work, as they are tall and square, just like the home,” she says. “I only saw this house briefly and didn’t have measurements but knew one [would go] upstairs and one downstairs.” The room opens to a balcony, which is the prime place to be in summer.
A lamp Gary made from a vintage piece of wood from Montreaux is a treasured piece in the upstairs living area.
Blinds: Dollar Curtains & Blinds
Blinds: Dollar Curtains & Blinds
Gary covered Lack shelves from Ikea in fence wood and painted them white to enhance the coastal style. From there, Michelle added wooden and rustic pieces from her collection.
The master bedroom is next to the open-plan living area upstairs. It originally featured bright blue carpet, which the couple replaced with a walnut floating floor from Fowles.
The master bedroom has a cozy little reading nook.
Gary also installed the outdoor decking in the small backyard, which the Woodses use often.
“Last Christmas, my brother Dean and his family, who live in the United States, came out for Christmas,” Michelle says. “It was the hottest Christmas day, and we all sat around after lunch on our back deck, which has afternoon shade. It was so relaxing, and we all then went to the beach over the road later in the day.”
“Last Christmas, my brother Dean and his family, who live in the United States, came out for Christmas,” Michelle says. “It was the hottest Christmas day, and we all sat around after lunch on our back deck, which has afternoon shade. It was so relaxing, and we all then went to the beach over the road later in the day.”
Many of the family’s vintage nautical-themed treasures were originally purchased for the Mich and Mace stall but ended up in the home instead, including this lifesaving ring.
The exterior of the house also needed a fresh coat of paint, which the couple did during one of their vacations.
The townhouse is on a busy esplanade but is set back on the property. The windows have double panes for sound and weather insulation.
“Every day, it feels beautiful, and you want to be home,” Michelle says. “Why go on holidays when your home is just a walk across the road from the beach, and it’s a gorgeous haven that’s also close to amazing shops and restaurants? On hot nights, we take our dinner in a picnic basket and walk across to the point to enjoy the sunset.”
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My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Who lives here: Michelle and Gary Woods and their 15-year-old daughter, Macey
Location: Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia
Size: Three bedrooms, two bathrooms
The family had just sold their Victorian-style home in Mount Martha when they found their new abode. Gary and Macey discovered the home while Michelle was at work.
Michelle, pictured above with Macey, didn’t need any persuading. “I just knew, despite the orange, blue and yellow sand walls,” she says. “I saw the wooden floors and tall French doors and fell in love.” She put in an offer on the way out the door. “Gary nearly fell over, as we just had a quick look and hadn’t even discussed it. Luckily for us, the market was down, and the low offer was accepted.”