Stalking concrete in the sand dunes

McMansion beach shack just behind the sand dunes on the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane. Concrete and steel, bunker with pool, white with waves and all with easy clean floors to help sweep away the sand that you trek in from the beach beyond the rising wall of thickly vegetated dunes. The sound of the waves crashing will barely reverberate through the concrete slabs and the world is shut out from the street with high fences and a turned back but throw those window walls wide open and there it is, your private oasis. Just sold but you can find it here while the link lasts.

P.S. Spot the poodle hidden in these photos.

Click to read more ...

Stepped House

Minimalism again? Oh yes! But instead of stark, cold white there is a richness, a glow. Simple clean lines but multi-layered with different surfaces and textures. Spartan but elegant. Who said minimalism was cold? What is devoid of surface  pattern is enriched by the interplay of materials. Stepped House by Australian architects Russell & George.

Click to read more ...

A Muskoka cottage

We received an email about this "cottage" which I think is an odd term for such a HUGE home that is located in probably the most expensive "cottage country" in Canada. The Muskokas are where them rich folk hang out in the summer. And homes like this are not their primary residences! Insanity, I know. The interior of this home is pretty blah, but I was blown away by the views out of each and every window (which are apparently all fancy top-of-the-line windows says the info we were given on the home). Picturesque!

  

Click to read more ...

Photographer crush

I have had a crush on Toronto photographer Angus Fergusson (ok, his work really) since the dawn of time...or when I started reading shelter magazines religiously. Like white on rice, or stray cats to my house, Angus' work is all over Canadian mags and has been for some time. The 15 photos below prove I'm not just running my mouth off. (P.S. Jo's crushing too - see here).

Click to read more ...

Belgian minimalism

Continuing my fascination with minimalist homes around the world. A Belgian mansion style house that has seen better days, lost some of its character with one too many renovations. The old exterior is kept but at the back the minimalist magic begins. The renovation was about aligning and subtracting. Consolidating and eliminating. It's black but it's white. It has historical references but modern credentials. It's about light and space and a new life. It's House J & M by Bruno Vanbesien.

Click to read more ...