We were engaged to assist with the fit out of a new 3 bedroom unit for a single mum with two teenage children to move into and live. The family was moving from the North Brisbane area and needed to escape from where they lived due to personal reasons.

The client was very focussed on making the transition easy for her two children and to make them feel a part of the process by asking them what they liked initially. Therefore, taking in this brief my focus was to create a home or new ‘life’ that was a sanctuary of positive energy and relaxed coastal vibes.

The location was in a lovely complex overlooking a lake, with beautiful greenery and walking paths around them; therefore, furnishing and dressing a large outside balcony space overlooking this scenery was important. Being the ages of the children, creating different zones throughout the unit suited how the family were interact and grow within these spaces. The teenager children had their own spaces to retreat to but were styled with flexibility for them to add their own personality.

I created an outdoor space for the 17 year old boy off his bedroom, to hang with friends plus a study zone outside his room for schooling. The 13 year old girl had a bedroom with soft colour and furnishings with multi-use furniture like her desk come bedside table come make up table; and the mum had a lovely day bed outside her room to chill out with a book or to hang out with her daughter for some girl time.

The composition of the décor and colours very much followed the design principles with a neutral base of warm greys and shades of white and accents of teal blue; textures of natural timber and rattan, organic shapes mixed with some strong lines; and patterns of interest in cushion fabrics and floor rugs in the main living areas. The bedrooms were more personal to the occupants’ requests and the outdoor area was to create a personal paradise to escape which was defined in three zones!