Tag: georgia ezra

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Designers Kitchens RENO ADDICT

Adding character to a kitchen: steal Georgia’s style

It can be hard to add character to a brand new kitchen but Melbourne interior designer Georgia Ezra makes it look easy in this stunning space.

A love of Mediterranean style and a predilection for handmade and natural finishes were the inspiration for her family home.

An historic building, untouched for decades, gave Georgia the scope to introduce a contemporary U-shaped kitchen with an inspired mix of pale timber, Moroccan zellige ceramic tiles (which she herself imports and sells), Caesarstone quartz surfaces, hemp burlap and limewash paint.

The palette is one of warm, earthy tones that exudes natural and handmade, yet overall the look is tailored and refined. “I wanted to create a bespoke look, inspired by two of my favourite places on the planet – Morocco and Spain. But overall, functionality was at the forefront of the design,” said Georgia, of Studio Ezra.

The kitchen’s traditional work triangle encompasses lush garden views from the sink and has at its focal point a solid oak work island. The minimalist cabinets are inlaid with a sutble grasscloth that softens some of the other harder materials.

Caesarstone Topus Concrete

The benchtops are Caesarstone Topus Concrete, a beautiful soft oatmeal hue with a patina comprising mineral formations found in nature – the sublime, almost delicate surface belies its strength and durability.

“I chose Caesarstone for its resilience – I can relax about the everyday wear and tear that comes with a young family and not worry about damaging or staining of the surfaces,” said Georgia. It’s both heat and scratch-resistant, easy to clean and will never require sealing.

For more information on Caesarstone | For more information on Studio Ezra | Georgia’s tile business Tiles of Ezra

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Designers House Tours Interviews

Mid-century and the Mediterranean inspire real Melbourne home

There’s a strong Mediterranean influence infused throughout this serene Melbourne family home befitting its Croatian owners – a fifty-something builder, his wife and two grown-up sons. “They came to me because they do a lot of construction and move from house to house. This time they wanted something really special because they intend to stay in the home for a long time. Ultimately they wanted something unique and experiential,” says the project’s interior architect Georgia Ezra.

The kitchen

Combining Tasmanian oak veneer paneling with beautiful handmade clay tiles and bespoke rattan joinery, the home is rich in texture and brimming with gorgeous details. “The project definitely has Mediterranean influences in there but it draws on the 1970’s and mid-century modern design too,” says Georgia.

Entry tile detail

Featuring custom, Moroccan zellige, colour-glazed clay tiles, the front entrance is a design highlight. “It’s as if there’s a runner or rug inset into the floor,” says Georgia of the pale green and white tiles that were created by her company, Tiles of Ezra. Another notable flooring detail is the gorgeous Australian hardwood timber that is laid in a Chevron pattern throughout the home.

The lounge features timber veneer on the walls for a strong mid-century vibe

Georgia’s unique tiles feature elsewhere too – most notably around the fireplace and kitchen splashback. “At about $1,200 per square metre, the intricate, mosaic tile surrounding the fireplace is a very high-end luxurious design cut by hand,” says Georgia.

Kitchen splashback

The tiles on the splashback and rangehood have a gorgeous, shimmery pearl-like finish created in their manufacture. “They’re made entirely from clay that is glazed and put in the kiln at a high temperature. The variation in tone depends on where they’re placed in the kiln. There is serious variation — some are bluer while others are more pink, white or grey which creates great depth. It’s not considered a defect to have knocks, chips and dimples present on the glaze.”

The kitchen island doubles as a casual dining space

The kitchen island bench is another highlight with the bespoke joinery featuring a combination of timber and stone. “The owners wanted something that was super functional but also acted as a casual dining place. At 720mm high, the timber table is a functional dining height and the family eat there every night on their beautiful Thonet chairs,” says Georgia.

Custom white rattan cupboards feature in the kitchen

A unique feature, the kitchen features a bank of cupboards fronted in white rattan. “We had to take the rolls of rattan, dunk them in water and hold them down before spraying them in two-pack paint,” says Georgia.

Lounge and dining

“I don’t think the photos do it justice. When you walk into the home, the whole area opens up – it’s experiential. It’s one of those homes that you walk through and feel something special. This is one of my favourite jobs ever and the clients love it too,” says Georgia.

Formal lounge

For more of Georgia’s work | Shop Tiles of Ezra

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Homewares

Tiles of Ezra: bringing Mexican designs to Australian shores

Struggling to find tiles that worked for her projects with exotic, cultural references, interior architect Georgia Ezra, decided to take matters into her own hands.

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Clay Collective

A lover of authentic, high quality products, she created Tiles of Ezra, a label inspired by Mexican tile design. “The vibrant, romantic aesthetic of the Spanish revival architecture in Mexico and California is very appealing but we don’t experience it in Australia,” she says. “I love that these tiles bring a taste of that history and sensibility to people who live here. That spirit and look blends harmoniously with our environment and culture.”

Enlisting the help of her sister, New York based designer Micaela Ezra, and a boutique team of artisans in Mexico, much of the tile-making process — from preparing the clay to painting the final design — is performed by hand, with the final result creating three distinct ranges.

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Ceramic Classics

“The Ceramic Classics (above) are all derived from traditional Mexican tile designs,” explains Georgia. “Here we would never want to augment the patterns, as the aim is to offer an authentically Mexican, artisan product.

“We decided with the Ceramic Modernist range (below) to fuse two aesthetics. Technically the material choice, a glazed ceramic, references the Hispano-Moresque ‘azulejo’ aesthetic, meaning ‘polished stone’. However, we have applied graphic Moroccan designs to this traditional surface.”

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Ceramic Modernist

Lastly, there’s the Clay Collective range, a series of terracotta tiles in various shapes. A personal favourite of mine and arguably their most unique, customers can choose from a huge range of colour and shape options to create anything from a clean modern aesthetic to an exotic ethnic vibe.

“This series was a way for us to allow customers to really personalise the way they incorporate tiles into their space,” says Georgia. “While the Ceramic Classics and Ceramic Modernists are very much about their surface design, the Clay Collective allows you to focus on shape and colour. As a result, there is incredible versatility in the mood you can create with this product.”

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Clay Collective

Since all tiles are hand painted, they evoke a particularly warm and authentic feeling which Georgia believes: “you simply cannot get from more manufactured tiles.” Versatile, hard-wearing, low maintenance and easy to clean, these stain-resistant colour-fast tiles are the perfect statement for bringing a little bit of Mexico to your home.

For more information.