I love nothing more than coming home opening the house up maybe
getting a meal started and seeing what the family has been up to for the day.
Hi I'm Rochelle and I'm Matt we're the owners of Courland
House and also the directors of Secret Gardens.
Our home is situated about four blocks back from Coogee Beach and we're essentially at
the bottom of a steep valley, it's discreetly tucked behind a weeping
myrtle so even before you arrive at the gates it feels expansive.
It certainly feels unique but what really leaves the lasting impression on all of our guests is
that connection with the outdoor space and that beauty that's been created and how the two work
harmoniously together, the architecture of the home and the garden and one makes the other shine.
We initially purchased the property 10 years ago so when we moved in,
the first stage was essentially putting the pool in and replacing the garages at the front
and then we renovated two years ago to really change the house to suit what we're trying to
achieve which was a house for young adults and we knew that we had the skills and the desire to
turn it into something really unique and create our own secret garden but close to the coast,
close to the city and it was really going to offer everything that our family needed.
My name is Jonathan Spicer I'm the director of
Spicer Architecture I am the architect for Courland House.
Matt and Rochelle were introduced to me through mutual friends so I met Matt and Rochelle here
and we did a walk through together it was really exciting opportunity for me,
I was obviously very much looking forward to working and learning from Matt Cantwell
through the process of design and both Matt and Rochelle understood the importance of
integrating nature and planting as a way to define spaces but also as a way to
create zones between public and private which is something that I'm also very passionate about.
So the brief was essentially to knock down the entire private section of the house,
maintain the entertaining areas that we're in now but give them a new life and an upgrade.
The design of the new private areas was to ensure that there was space to not only obviously sleep
and live in but also study work and relax the other design parameter was to ensure that all
every angle of the house looks onto a garden or planting vista.
Clearly the garden aspect of this project was really important given our occupation but it
was also important because of the nature of this site. It is unusual proportions this block it's
essentially 70 meters long and nine meters wide so it was really important with those
proportions to ensure that we were connecting with the greater landscape and neighbouring
trees and gardens and just providing that really important connection with the natural aspect.
I would say the appearance of the house is modernist and contemporary
with an almost open tropical feel and the inspiration behind this design was quite
literally Matt and Rochelle's business there's Secret Gardens everywhere.
Secret Gardens has been established for about 30 years now Rochelle joined,
well exactly 17 years ago when our first was born, clearly she has a different
skill set with a business background but also a deep love for design and so it's
been a really easy working relationship not just at work but at home as well.
Every great project takes a team effort and obviously the working relationship
between Rochelle and I with Jonathan our architect, our interior designer
Trudy and Darren from Pride and Passion was absolutely amazing throughout the process.
His attention to detail is evident in every part of the house, an example of that
is the brickwork, so the wall itself is a feature it's in both of the boys
bedrooms and extends out to the front area of the house as well.
So we've added some natural tones such as the floorboards and in the kitchen just
to add some warmth to the house and to work well with the whites and the greys.
Rochelle was really great to work with in materials she really knew what she wanted
and it was a very simple process to define the spaces relatively quickly working with
Jonathan it was such a collaborative process all the way through there were elements where
we would pair back on things or change things and Jonathan was great at responding to that brief.
So selecting all of the finishes and materials it was really important to
have a very neutral palette and the intention between keeping a simple and a neutral palette
was every room in the house has a garden outlook. We didn't want the interiors to
compete with the external areas we really wanted the external areas to be the heroes.
Designing your own home as a design professional is always a little bit of a challenge particularly
when you're designing for your own family there's a lot of pressure in relation to that,
so eventually you have to commit to what is the best alternative and you
know the structural form of the garden is always the starting point and an important
element of the garden design but it's never complete without a strong planting scheme.
I'm a real plant enthusiast so there's areas particularly like the cactus garden internally
that was my opportunity to have a living sculpture garden and enable light to be
drawn in year-round, so it's really hard to pick a favourite spot in the garden.
I think though that what is the tell-tale sign of a success is seeing the garden used
seeing the family take advantage of all the spaces for it to really be able to perform.
And Christmas Day is an example it was just a beautiful day the house doesn't feel crowded
people were spilled from the dining room right through down to the fire pit area
sitting outside the house has that relaxing effect it's not precious people tend to come
in and sit on couches find their space for the day and settle which is really lovely.