An Artist’s 1970s Log Cabin, Passed Down From Grandma

An Artist’s 1970s Log Cabin, Passed Down From Grandma

Homes

by Lucy Feagins, Editor

Framed watercolour by Adam Lee. Mark Tuckey Oak Tripod dining table. Takahashi Asako 170 Oak dining chairs, restored by Edwin Fox Furniture. Mud Australia platter and pebble bowl. Vintage Wedgewood Halley’s Comet plate. Inax Format tiles on bench from Artedomus.

Laurine and Adam Lee with Primrose the English cocker spaniel inside their Macedon Ranges home. Radial Timber ceiling. RMS Natural Stone slate flooring. Original restored Stegbar windows.

Framed ‘Zim Zum’watercolour by Adam Lee. ‘Zim Zum is probably one of my most treasured works. It’s deeply personal and I adore it,’ says Laurine. Mark Tuckey Oak Tripod dining table. Takahashi Asako 170 Oak dining chairs, restored by Edwin Fox Furniture. Mud Australia platter and bowl. Vintage Wedgewood Haleys Comet plate. Radial Timber ceiling.

Kitchen designed by Connors Kitchen By DesignMud Australia pendants. Radial Timber ceiling. RMS Natural Stone slate flooring. Mark Tuckey Oak Tripod dining table. ‘After my great aunt died I purchased this table in her honour,’ says Laurine.

Mud Australia bowl. Essastone Ash Concrete on splashback. Sirius rangehood.

Top shelf: Mud Australia latte cups, Statue of David from Florence. Second shelf: Bison Home cup, ceramics from Florence, sculpture by Abi Lee, Mud Australia wine cups. Bottom Shelf: Wingnut & Co mugs, Hario Pour Over Cone and Pitchii Glass Jug from Market Lane Coffee. Tile from Cotswolds UK. On bench: Mud Australia oval vase. Dahlias from Woodend Flower Farm.

‘This is one of my favourite views, looking down to the locker bay and ‘bag drop’ zone at the back door. Everything has been designed with how we live in mind,’ Laurine says. Radial Timber ceiling. RMS Natural Stone slate flooring.

Artworks by Adam Lee. Mark Tuckey Oak Tripod dining table. Takahashi Asako 170 Oak dining chairs, restored by Edwin Fox Furniture. Radial Timber ceiling. RMS Natural Stone slate flooring. Original restored Stegbar windows.

Watercolour on left by Adam Lee. Artwork on right by Michael Vale. Jardan Andy sofa, August coffee table, Bam Bam Rug Coral, and Lake chair. Mud Australia vase. Bonnie and Neil cushion. Bookshelves made by Adam. Vintage stool. Antique French Majolica vases.

Painting on right by Maja Ruznic. Paintings on left by Laith McGregor. Corridor shelving by  Connors Kitchen By Design. Vintage Fler SC55 chair, restored by Edwin Fox Furniture. O’Gorman’s curtains.

Wardrobes by Connors Kitchen By Design. Vintage Fler SC55 chair, restored by Edwin Fox Furniture. Bremworth Thorndale carpet. Adairs bedlinen.

The same Inax Format tiles from Artedomus were used in the kitchen and bathroom to reduce costs and wastage.. Kaldewei bath from Reece. Miss April towels from Wooden General. Tiling by Alvand Tiling & Stonemasonry Services.

 

Sussex Taps outlets. Alape Scopio basin from Reece. Future Glass mirror. Mud Australia vase.

Artwork by Amber Wallis. Adairs bedlinen. Jardan Nelly Table Light Low. IKEA bedside table.

Wall painted Dulux Spores. Tiling by Alvand Tiling & Stonemasonry Services. Kado Arc Shaving Cabinet, Kado Arc Timber Drawers, and Alape Scopio basin from Reece. Sussex Taps outlets. Vintage stool. Inax Sugie Series tiles from Artedomus.

Vintage outdoor setting from Laurine’s grandmother.

Artwork by Adam Lee. Elipark insect house.

The log cabin facade.

Buying this 1977 kit home among the trees was a dream come true for artist Adam Lee’s grandmother, who purchased the New Gisborne property in 1989.

Over time, the log cabin became less suitable for Adam’s gran and her husband’s needs, so they built a separate cottage on the same 10-acre property, and began renting the original home out to family.

Laurine Lee grew up in Melbourne and had no desire to live in the country, until she married Adam, who longed for the space and solitude of his upbringing in Victoria’s Macedon Ranges.

The couple agreed to move, at first temporarily, but they never looked back. ‘Within six months I was converted… but your first Macedon Ranges winter is always the coldest!’ says Laurine.

Adam and Laurine rented in town before moving to the log cabin in 2008. A planned two-year stint soon became a permanent move, and they officially purchased the property from Adam’s grandmother in 2016.

The log cabin had been haphazardly updated over the years and was now in need of extensive repairs and restoration.

The initial plan was for a new kitchen, followed by room-by-room updates, although this soon proved impossible. ‘Unfortunately we very quickly uncovered the domino effect of renovating dreams (the floor! the ceiling!) and we had to accept the fact that we would just have to wait until one day we could move out and do it all in one go,’ Laurine says.

In 2022, the family finally set out on a complete rebuild of the home. Over five months, the interior was demolished, and the original walls rebuilt.

Any changes made to the home were based on years of conversations with Laurine’s architect dad and other talented designer friends (in exchange for an Adam Lee painting!)

‘We decided that we didn’t want to change the house layout much at all, we just wanted to improve what we had and keep with the feeling of the original home,’ says Laurine. ‘Because we lived here for 14 years before we renovated, we knew the house better than anyone.’

A neutral base of slate flooring, timber ceilings, and white walls was carried throughout the new interiors, with the exception of the calming Dulux Spores green en suite.

The family’s personality shines in the selection of art, which includes many of Adam’s own incredible works, and those collected through trades with other artists.

‘We designed many of our walls with specific works in mind,’ says Laurine. ‘Everywhere you turn it’s another piece of us and our journey together as a couple and as a family.’

The furniture is just as personal to Laurine, who has inherited and commissioned many pieces to honour family members.

The new Jardan items and Mark Tuckey table are the result of many years saving, and numerous showroom visits, before arriving at the perfect pieces.

‘It was a huge investment for us but we believe in Australian design and we choose to support local wherever we can. In our case that meant living with hand me down furniture for the better part of two decades!’

The rebuilt home is a dream realised for Laurine and Adam, that continues their family legacy on the New Gisborne property.

Adam Lee’s next solo exhibition at Station opens July 20. Adam’s work can also be seen in the upcoming exhibition Old Stories New Magic at Maitland Regional Art Gallery.

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