wahroonga – The Interiors Addict

Tara Dennis’ beautiful new Sydney homewares store

Well loved Better Homes and Gardens star Tara Dennis has opened a homewares store and luckily for me, it’s right on my doorstep in Wahroonga on Sydney’s Upper North Shore. I popped in for a visit last week, to find she’s transformed the former purple and yellow party store into a neutral, textural oasis of new and vintage furniture and homewares.

It’s all happened rather quickly! Tara was actually looking for an office space in the area when husband Martyn stumbled across the vacant shop. That was just before Christmas. Within six weeks, the lease was signed, the space transformed and open for business, and with very little marketing other than word of mouth, it’s had a constant stream of customers ever since. Once you step inside, you’ll soon see why!

It’s not as if mum-of-two Tara, with her TV commitments, corporate work for 3M Command and own homewares range exactly had time on her hands, but now she’s inadvertently given herself a new weekend job as a shop girl! It was never something she yearned to do, but she’s really enjoying it! Tara intends to be in the shop herself, working, every Saturday, and to run different craft workshops in the space out the back too. Stocking the uber popular Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, workshops on how to transform your old furniture with this wonder product will be top of the list!

Custom furniture, such as timber hutches for kitchens, have been the surprise best sellers and Tara loves the fact they can offer something unique to shoppers. Also flying out of the door are vinyl door mats imported from France which look like tiles.

Tara, who owns a house she renovated in the suburb, says everything stocked is something she’d love in her own home.

In today’s eCommerce world, I agree with Tara that shoppers still love a bricks and mortar store with an unusual offering, custom products, great service and in-store events.

It’s not set up like your average store and it’s beautifully styled, changing every few days so you’ll always find something new or be inspired by a new vignette!

Get on down for a visit; you won’t be disappointed! Follow them on Instagram and find info on upcoming classes on their Facebook Page. They’ll soon be selling online too.

The Tara Dennis Store, 33 Redleaf Avenue, Wahroonga, NSW 2076

Real reno: the $2.5 million transformation of one of Sydney’s grandest estates

When a renovation takes two years to complete and costs a whopping $2.5 million, you know you’re in for a pretty spectacular end result!

Restored by Sukari Design, the 1930s estate in Sydney’s Wahroonga features three dwellings: a main home, a gardener’s cottage and a pool house, alongside horse stables, a swimming pool and a tennis court! And the main home’s far from understated either, with six bedrooms, 10 bathrooms (yes, 10!), three kitchens and a theatre.

Before - Formal Lounge — Before – Formal Lounge

After - Formal Lounge — After – Formal Lounge

However, while the home is a testament to exemplary architecture, prior to its renovation it was a far cry from its glory days. Extremely worn and featuring some rather unsightly green carpets and yellow walls, the home had to be completely gutted. “It was very neglected however the beautiful curved walls, Juliette balconies and domed ceiling in the foyer showed that this home was once amazing and had the potential to be extremely special,” says Joumana Sukari, one half of Sukari Design. “So we completely gutted the home and several walls were removed to allow for an open plan kitchen/family room. Revitalizing the home was a key factor in the clients’ brief.”

With the new owners (who have chosen to remain anonymous) wanting to maintain the integrity and history of the estate, but with a more transitional design style, Joumana and her sister-in-law/co-owner Michelle Sukari created a grand and luxurious home, that they refer to as one of their all time favorite projects.

Before - Entrance Hall — Before – Entrance Hall

After - Entrance Hall — After – Entrance Hall

Yet that doesn’t mean it came easy, with the project seeing some nasty surprises and unexpected expenses pop up along the way. “When the old carpet was removed we discovered that the timber flooring, which we were hoping to retain, was infested with termites,” explains Joumana. “New hardwood timber flooring had to be installed, luckily we had budgeted for unexpected expenses.”

Challenges also came in the form of a rather testing brief, to create 10 different bathroom schemes! “Our clients wanted each bathroom to have its own individual look, so creating 10 schemes that complemented each other but were different was definitely the biggest challenge!”

Before - Main Bathroom — Before – Main Bathroom

After - Main Bathroom — After – Main Bathroom

While the home obviously went through quite the transformation, for Joumana the biggest change came in the form of the new kitchen and the decorative wall mouldings. “The location of the original kitchen and its deteriorated state devalued the home, however the new kitchen is fresh, elegant and sophisticated and has an abundance of natural light. Also the mouldings, architraves and skirting boards all made a huge difference. The walls seemed very bare prior to installing these.”

Before - Master Bedroom — Before – Master Bedroom

After - Master Bedroom — After – Master Bedroom

Undoubtedly a huge project, Joumana learnt some invaluable lessons during the renovation. “Make sure that every aspect of your renovation has been accurately budgeted for and allow for unexpected expenses (such as termites) to appear! Importing products from overseas and dealing with shipping companies, customs brokers and tax law is also a huge learning curve.”

But, when all is said and done, would she and Michelle do it again? “In a heartbeat!”

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