Avoca House

For this sprawling family retreat in Avoca, one of Australia’s most popular beach holiday destinations, the clients requested a classic beach ambience. The two-storey, five-bedroom house built by Greg Natale Design sits on bushland property a few kilometres from the beach, so GND combined country and coastal styles for its interior design. In terms of palette, white was an obvious choice to create a light, clean backdrop and highlight the house’s generous proportions, while panelling gives the white ceilings and walls dramatic detail. Blue was the perfect partner to ensure a sophisticated seaside vibe, and GND opted for a vibrant cobalt, beginning with standout double front doors and continuing in a series of patterned rugs, runners and tiles. The use of blue is distilled in patterned rugs and runners as well as concentrated in bold blocks. A blue billiard table lends vivacity to the billiard room, while blue kitchen cabinets combine with terracotta-toned tiles and a striking brass rangehood to great effect. Wallpaper in the bedrooms introduces a spectrum of blues in a variety of treatments. The symphony of blue and white finishes with the liberal use of floor and wall tiles, from geometric subway style to glossy fish scales to Mediterranean florals. These tiles echo the palette and patterns at play through the house, which merge classic country estate and beach holiday house.