Millie Savage’s Outrageous, Colour-Filled Farmhouse
Homes
The dining room and kitchen. Artwork under stairs by Charlie Ingemar Harding. Artwork at top of the stairs by Ajay Jennings. Table made using recycled railway tracks and beams by Salmon Furniture. Tall bowl sculpture by Jordan Fleming. Millie’s studio door made by Simeon Dux. The structural column on the roof has been wrapped in brass. ‘It was a pole we had to keep, and wrapping it was the best (and most affordable) way to make it fit aesthetically with the rest of the house,’ says Millie.
Jeweller Millie Savage, and Reigner Clothing owner James Noble, in their Gherang, Victoria home.
Mr Biscuit sitting beneath Charlie Ingemar Harding and Ajay Jennings‘ artwork.
The cubbyholes housing Millie’s crystal collection. Custom-made pink terrazzo floors. Painting of vase by Troy Emery.
Various ceramics and sculptures by: Jess Milne; Tessy King; Glenn Barkley.
Custom glass ‘spiky’ pendants by Leisa Wharington, who Millie shares a studio space with in Moorooduc. Paintings by Ben Minkley, Miranda Skoczek and more
‘The couch was custom-made to perfectly fit the shape of the lounge,’ says Millie. ‘We wanted a big, floppy couch with plenty of space, and we’re pretty sure we’ve ended up creating the most comfortable couch ever!’
Millie’s studio door made by Simeon Dux using recycled Otway timber. ‘The star on the door is my old logo from when I started making jewellery 10 years ago,’ says Millie. Tall bowl sculpture by Jordan Fleming.
Custom-made sofa. Custom glass pendants by Leisa Wharington.
Millie working at her jewellery bench with Ms Sparkles. Mirror bought from Fossil Vintage.
Some of Millie’s beautiful pieces.
The burgundy bathroom.
The walk-in wardrobe leading into the main bedroom. ‘We wanted the doors to go as high as possible, following the ceiling line, and the same goes for the windows,’ says Millie. ‘What’s great is that the windows in our bedroom mirror the shape of the doors, tying everything together beautifully.’
Purple bath ordered from NuPride Kitchens & Bathrooms. Green onyx flooring.
The en suite, designed by Millie’s friend and architect Isabelle Jooste.
‘An interesting thing about the cladded ceilings is that putting them up was a massive task. Unfortunately, a painter made a huge mistake and painted them, leaving them looking streaky and fake tanned. It was such a disaster that we ended up having to re-clad the entire place. Thankfully, it was probably the only real thing that went wrong during the whole process, so we count ourselves lucky!’ Millie says.
Artwork at top of the stairs by Ajay Jennings.
The mud room provides a calming entry space to remove boots and hats.
An accidental over ordering of natural stone led to the indulgent laundry! ‘James and I hate doing the laundry, so we figured if we’re going to do it, it might as well be in a space that’s nice to be in!’
The entire exterior is clad in recycled corrugated iron collected from Facebook Marketplace. ‘I love the mix of textures and colors in the weathered metal; it gives the house so much character,’ says Millie.
Millie returning from the goat shed.
‘One of the first things I did when we got to the farm was put in an outdoor bath and plumb it with hot water,’ says Millie. ‘I absolutely love having a bath in the garden.’
The updated landscaping includes a custom glass house and steel mushrooms! ‘We’re still not quite sure what to do with the glasshouse. I had it custom made with the idea of filling it with plants, but now we’re debating whether it would make a better chicken house,’ says Millie.
One of Millie and James’ goats.
Millie tends to the goats and two alpacas, Bert and Ernie. The goat tower was made by Millie’s dad!
Millie and James’ horses Martini, Gucci, and Oskar come up to the house. ‘We probably let them out for an hour or two every day, and they love grazing on the fresh grass while coming up for scratches and pats,’ says Millie. ‘It’s such a nice energy, watching them gallop around or wander up for cuddles and nuzzles. If you’re out gardening, they’ll just follow you around the whole time.’
The house of jeweller Millie Savage, and Reigner Clothing owner James Noble, is one of the most unique homes we’ve ever seen.
Three years ago, when the couple bought the property, it was another story entirely.
‘It was an old farmhouse; very white, with low, flat ceilings and small windows,’ says Millie. ‘All the pitched ceilings had been plastered over and the entire interior was white.’
What the couple did love was the exterior shape of the house (‘It had that old barn feel with a steeply pitched roof,’ Millie says), established trees (the property is a few minutes drive from The Otways), and plenty of land for animals.
Millie and James lived in the existing house for a year getting to know the site, before embarking on a major transformation to make it their own.
‘Creativity can be expressed in so many ways, and building our home felt like an extension of what we do every day with our work… It’s as much a creative expression as it is a place to live,’ says Millie.
The existing home was gutted, making way for a more generously configured floor plan, huge windows, and a rainbow of ‘outrageous’ colours.
Millie explains the vision, ‘We wanted each room to feel completely different from the rest of the house — like stepping into a new experience.
‘It’s gotta feel warm, it’s gotta feel fun, and most importantly, it’s gotta feel like a place you want to party!’
Each room is anchored by one or two key colours, layered with custom detail, starting with the kitchen floors.
‘They are pink terrazzo with different colour stone slabs smashed up and placed in,’ says Millie. ‘I chose stones that are already throughout the house. For example, the green stone on the kitchen bench is one of the same stones on the floor.’
The sky blue feature wall of cubbyholes housing Millie’s crystal collection is another one-of-a-kind detail.
‘The crystal wall was inspired by a visit to the Museum of Natural History in New York where I was blown away by how beautifully the crystals were displayed,’ Millie says.
‘To make the wall, I hand drew the arches before cutting them out, and the plasterers created little cubbyholes for the crystals.’
She adds, ‘Honestly, I’m not sure I buy into the idea of crystals giving you powers (cool if you do, no judgment!), but I do know this wall makes me so happy to look at every day. Crystals are nature’s art pieces, and that says enough, right?’
Another statement piece — and one of Millie’s favourite features of the entire home — is the lavender clawfoot bath occupying its own corner of the main bedroom.
‘I love purple and green together and the green onyx stone with the lavender bathtub is iconic,’ she says. ‘I bathe every day and sometimes even take meetings while I’m in the bath. It’s probably where you will find me if you come over!’
Millie and James weren’t always sure of their daring colour choices, but everything came together with the right furniture and styling.
‘To be honest, we actually were not happy with the colours of the stairs, the green wall, the blue fireplace until we moved the furniture in and lived with it for a bit!’ Millie says.
‘Most people wouldn’t dream of the outrageous palette we’ve gone with, but sticking to just four colors just isn’t us.’
The exterior retains the farmhouse feel of the original house enhanced by recycled, corrugated iron cladding sourced via Facebook Marketplace.
The landscaping remains a work in progress, but much has been done to personalise the property to suit the couple and their animals (goats, alpacas, dogs, and horses!) ‘We redid the garden, plumbed in an outdoor bath with hot water, added new sheds, and redid all the plumbing and water systems,’ says Millie.
A special shout out to the ‘goat tower’ built by Millie’s dad! ‘It’s absolutely incredible; a concrete culvert with a spiral staircase and a copper roof,’ says Millie. ‘The goats love it, and at night, if you come out with a torch, you’ll see all these tiny little eyes staring back at you from the tower. It’s the best gift ever!’
James and Millie worked with numerous people to make the design and build of their home happen, including two builders (Moon Building Group and Jaros Construction ), a draftsperson (Jordy Fella), designer (Vincent Jarvis Studio, who did the technical drawings), architect (Isabelle Jooste, who designed the green bathroom) and lighting designer (Leisa Wharington, who made all the feature glass lighting), just to name a few!
‘It was a massive team effort. James and I always had a super clear vision of what we wanted, not on paper, just in our heads,’ explains Millie.
The renovated house is now thoroughly enjoyed by Millie and James and regular guests who stay in the dedicated bunk room (sleeps eight!).
‘Hosting is a big part of our lives, and we’ve designed the house to be perfect for it,’ says Millie.
‘When our friends come down from Melbourne, we can comfortably sleep a ridiculous number of people, so the party doesn’t have to end!’