Oranges & Lemons

A new layout and citrus palette has given this former hostel in Melbourne zing, and the family who saw past all its shabby white walls are delighted.

- Stephen Crafti

This house in Melbourne’s north-east wasn’t bought for its street appeal, but rather its location in one of the city’s hilliest and leafiest suburbs. Owners Rena and Tim Padman, together with daughters Evie, 13, and Matilda, 11, were looking to move from their compact townhouse in nearby Fairfield when they spotted the property on the internet. But it was far from love at first sight.

“I think my words were ‘spectacularly ugly’,” says Rena, “followed by ‘who could possibly be interested?’ ” However, on inspecting this 1930s brick house – with a 1960s addition at the front and 1980s section at the rear – the couple’s reaction changed slightly. “Rena and I saw that it could, in the right hands, be transformed into a family home,” says Tim.

Those hands belonged to Multiplicity, an award-winning architecture and interior-design practice with a reputation for turning nondescript homes into something special. Rena and Tim heard about the firm’s interior designer, Sioux Clark, and her partner, architect Tim O’Sullivan, through friends. Sioux is known for her wonderful sense of colour. As well as a penchant for green, she often places unexpected colours together to magical effect. In her designs, mauves, citrus hues, emerald and mint greens are often juxtaposed with darker tones.