Effortless luxury

There’s no point trying to compete with a landscape like this one. Surrounded by tussocked mountain peaks and rolling hills, the uninterrupted views from this site in Bendemeer Estate spurred a design from architects Ponting Fitzgerald that hunkered down into the landscape, with a palette of bronze cedar, black joinery and shuttered concrete helping to achieve this subtlety.

When it came to the interiors, Seagar Design responded to the homeowners’ request for the residence to be a family home that can be passed down through generations and one that can be lived in without preciousness with grandchildren underfoot, by selecting a palette of materials that combined longevity and escapism.

Shuttered concrete flanks the entrance way to this Queenstown home, carrying from the outside through to the interior. Image: Simon Wilson

“Largely this came down to the material selection, use of scale and proportion to communicate our design intentions,” says Natalie Seagar. “We were rigorous in ensuring the durability of the materials used, be it high rub counts, light fastness or practicality of the surfaces while using a rich depth of colour to bring forward a more luxurious undertone.”

Through the front entrance, which is flanked by shuttered concrete walls, a waxed steel wall adds a sense of opulence to elevate the utilitarian nature of the concrete, with bespoke glass pendants suspended across the surface, adding texture and reflectance. Black oak panelling wraps around into the hallway while a luscious green velvet curtain gives a soft richness.

Responding to the generous proportions of the living area with its high stud height and raked ceiling, the furniture is oversized, with touches of colour in the fabrics picked out from the tussocks seen through the expansive windows. In this open plan space, a textured Nodi rug helps to define the living area.

The kitchen features a beautifully grained black titanium granite benchtop with a honed leather finish for tactility. This space is designed to be well used by the family, with plenty of room and storage space and a colour palette that allows the view to take precedence. This was a general rule of the project, added to by simple black linen curtains used for window treatments, which along with the black joinery has the effect of framing the view rather than upstaging it.

Image: Simon Wilson

Providing a conversation piece and a sense of movement above the dining table, a Rhythm pendant by Arik Levy from ECC seems to reference the rocky mountain ranges in the distance. The outdoor dining area features a sturdy, verging on bulletproof, basalt topped table, which can withstand anything the weather might throw at it.

A Rhythm pendant by Arik Levy from ECC hangs over the dining table. Image: Simon Wilson

Moving away from the natural light and movement of the living area, the media room is a calming, cooler space with deep, low reflectance colours and a sense of comfort in the Simon James sectional sofas and linen-look curtains.

Image: Simon Wilson

The private areas of the house were an opportunity to accentuate a sense of escapism, says Natalie. “The master suite was softened with additional layering to window treatments, bedding and lighting and a finer attention to detail,” she says, and this is added to by the figured marble in the master bathroom and the pivoting black oak door that leads into the suite.

Image: Simon Wilson

Image: Simon Wilson

A finalist in the 2021 Interior Awards, this project shows Seagar Design’s deep understanding of the client’s needs and a careful consideration of the special nature of a truly beautiful site. Together with the exceptional architecture, the design achieves a sense of subtlety and solidity that allows it to live harmoniously with the landscape.

Design: Seagar Design

Project Team: Adrienne Seagar, in conjunction with Ponting Fitzgerald Architects, David Ponting.

Bendemeer Estate was named a finalist in the Residential category at the 2021 Interior Awards.