The Blockheads all took different approaches to the remaining rooms in their upstairs spaces this week, and it’s great to see them thinking about how they can make their houses stand out from each other beyond the obvious different eras. Their upstairs choices were all game changers in their own way, and from here on in it’s going to be very difficult to compare apples with apples. With upstairs done and dusted, who are your current frontrunners? Head to @shaynnablaze on Instagram or my Facebook page to join the debate…
Now we’re in the modern part of the house, Harry and Tash have really hit their stride. I felt they knew what they wanted to do from the start of this Block, but the 1920s era threw them for a while. Now they’re working on the modern part of their home they’re doing a beautiful job. They had a small space to work with upstairs, but they did a great job with it creating a nice open office/study space overlooking their stunning oak tree. Returning from shut down, the post-COVID reality of working and studying from home made that a great choice with lots of options for work, study and reading.
Harry and Tash’s bedroom was OMG! It was a big bedroom but the TV in the cabinetry and pull out couch bed created a flexibiliity in the space that will work well for them with buyers.
It’s all about graphic wallpaper this season, and Sarah and George’s bedroom this week was no exception with its treetops soaring to the ceiling. They’ve created a fantasy bedroom for a little girl which is definitely going to appeal to the market, and sells the dream of how a child would live in that space. They still kept the space flexible – it would be easy to change things up – but their rooms this week delivered a lot to potential buyers and pulled their upstairs level together.
Sarah and George’s upstairs home office makes so much more sense than the one they tucked in their downstairs bedroom, with lots of natural light and plenty of space for two people to work comfortably. It’s a simple room, not overly styled but quirky with a fun ‘show me the money’ artwork theme and Venetian plaster wallpaper. Their powder room continued that simplicity in palette and tile choices.
Daniel and Jade’s big reveal this week was really their hidden storage area which, along with their Block-leading five bedrooms, is real estate gold and adds massive value to their home.
With the exception on the wardrobe finish and handles, Daniel and Jade’s bedroom lacked the impact of previous week’s bedrooms. I imagine budget was tight so they were right, tactically, to pare things back in this fifth bedroom.They ticked the boxes, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
There was nothing particularly wrong with Daniel and Jade’s study/media room this week, things just weren’t quite right… The planning of the desk was great, but one sidewas cramped by the couch, which was stiff and not very comfortable, and the whole thing had a bit of a dated 2000s look.
Overall Luke and Jasmine’s reveal this week was stunning. The superbly styled white-on-white lounge room, with its comfy couch and sliding barn door, was a favourite with me. It felt incredibly luxe and is going to be a big selling point for their home, let down only by the faulty mounting of the door, and the desk drawers that dragged on the carpet and hit the rug.
The colour palette in Luke and Jasmine’s bedroom was equally stunning with coral, rattan and earthy beach tones, but they were let down by small execution points: poor paintwork in the hallway, lack of functional lighting and cramped bedside tables (the bedside wall sconces were beautiful though) and the height of the rattan bedhead.
Jimmy and Tam were again dealing with small spaces this week, but they created a cozy little media area and created privacy by adding a space-saving recessed sliding door. Their colour choices were stunning and another great 1950s artwork continued the heritage thread that runs through their whole home.
Jimmy and Tam’s bedroom is beautiful – a little bit copy and paste from their other bedrooms rooms – but a the same time it is stunning, that’s their look and feel, and it works. It was great that they included a kids desk in their wardrobe cabinetry for functionality, and the height of the bedroom and gorgeous colour palette creates a sense of luxury.
Megan Dougherty
Bravo Management Pty Ltd
Level 5, 111 Coventry Street,
Southbank VIC 3006
P: +61 (3) 8825 6641 (direct)
Blank Canvas Interiors
598-600, Burwood Road
Hawthorn East, VIC AUSTRALIA 3123