Andria Kiefer, owner and designer of Limb The Label and Honeymoon Studios, and her husband Cook Craig, musician and guitarist for King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard and The Murlocs, bought their first home in Reservoir last year.
The couple originally planned on slowly renovating the 1970s property, but when Melbourne entered lockdown, they got stuck in right away. There was only one problem – since tradespeople were strictly limited due to lockdown restrictions, most works had to be completed without professional help.
‘We got manically involved and couldn’t stop. It was a blessing really, as it kept us from going insane during lockdown,’ Andria says.
The house had good bones, having been lovingly looked after by the previous owner who built the home. ‘As such, they knew every nook and cranny of the entire place,’ Andria says.
Only cosmetic renovations were required to create more of a ‘Californian mid-century’ feel. ‘The style when we bought it was very ‘70s Italian kind of, as is often the style in the Reservoir area due to the huge postwar immigrant presence in the neighbourhood,’ Andria says. ‘The transformation from this style to the mid-century American/Californian vibe we went for was perfect.’
To achieve this, Andria and Cook spent six months demolishing, sanding, lacquering, stripping, painting, and rendering the entire place. Key tasks included the removal of jacquard wallpaper (‘very sticky stuff’ Andria says), replacing all the light fixtures, and painting ‘pretty much every surface.’ ‘Literally everything we did was cosmetic, which I think is quite impressive, as it really was a huge transformation, and on such a small budget too,’ Andria says.
A lot of work was also done to the garden, which the couple ripped up by hand, and replaced with a mixture of natives, succulents and some olive trees.
The end result is still very much in keeping with the original home, but with the added flair and contemporary style that comes naturally to these two talented creatives!
