Samantha van Egmond

2 months ago | homestolove.com.au | Bella Westaway |Samantha van Egmond

Arriving at Maria Dancuk’s home in East Gippsland, around four hours’ drive from Melbourne, has a similar effect to turning on your out-of-office. Perched on a cliffside overlooking the serene Gippsland Lakes and beyond to Bass Strait, on the traditional lands of the Gunaikurnai people, it evokes memories of languid childhood road trips and makes one appreciate the true luxury of time. “When you drive down into this place, you automatically think you’re on holiday; it just calms you,” says Maria.

Aug 28, 2024 | homestolove.com.au | Samantha van Egmond

With its golden sandstone buildings, antique shops and quaint cafes, it is little wonder Karen Miles was enchanted by the town of Oatlands, around an hour’s drive north of Hobart, during a work trip in 2018. “There were these beautiful, wide country streets, gorgeous chocolate-box houses lined up in rows and, of course, the lovely French provincial homewares store I was there to see,” says Karen, who was visiting a potential stockist for her linen homewares business, French Consul.

Mar 22, 2024 | homestolove.com.au | Samantha van Egmond

Who lives here: Mooey Carter and Simon Harris, a professional couple working in the construction industry. Style of home: A 180-square-metre, single-fronted Victorian worker’s cottage. Location: Melbourne suburb Fitzroy North, on Wurundjeri country. Timeline: The redo commenced in January 2022, with the couple moving back into the house by October that year.

Feb 19, 2024 | homestolove.com.au | Samantha van Egmond

Who lives here: Cassie Steel, a copy editor, and her husband, Majid Dubloo, a retail area manager, with their two sons — aged six and four — and two-year-old daughter. Style of home: An 85-square-metre cottage built in the early 1900s and redesigned as a contemporary home without extending the space. Location: Croydon in Sydney’s inner west, the traditional land of the Wangal people. Timeline: The renovation began in September 2022 and the family moved back in on completion in February 2023.

Dec 11, 2023 | homestolove.com.au | Samantha van Egmond |Brigid Arnott |Jodie Gibbons

When passionate gardeners Treska and Dave James found themselves in a newly built house on the South Coast of New South Wales, complete with shiny new furnishings and a lawn "manicured to within an inch of its life", they had an overwhelming sense that something was missing. "We built a massive home on a postage-stamp block," says Dave, who, along with Treska, works as a public servant and commutes to Sydney part-time.