A boldly colourful Melbourne house brought back to life by Anna Spiro

Keen eyed readers may recognise the Australian designer Anna Spiro’s distinct brand of eclecticism from House & Garden’s May 2019 issue, in which we featured her maximalist guest cottage in Brisbane. Her latest project, the house she shares in Melbourne with her husband Luke Warwick, hums with a similar energy: bold and unusual combinations of colours and pattern mingle with antiques and a treasured collection of art. It is unmistakably Anna. But, according to the designer, marks a significant turning point in her career. A move towards a more ‘mature’ approach. ‘The house is quite wild in some regards but I feel that I have pulled back slightly compared to my house in Brisbane’.

Anna and her husband Luke, the managing director of Melbourne-based textile company Elliott Clarke Textiles, split their time between Brisbane and Melbourne. During Covid’s first lockdown the couple found themselves stuck in their respective cities, and decided the time had come to find a place where they could both live. ‘We wanted to do up an old house’, she explains. The late 19th-century Victorian house had little to offer beyond ‘great bones’ and a classic brickwork facade, which was discovered after removing the curious art deco-esque frontage added in the 1960s or 1970s. ‘It was a sad house’ she reflects. ‘I said to my husband, “we’ve got to buy it. I need to fix it.”

The previous owner had owned the house for about 20 years and used it as a storage facility for his building company. Before that, it had been a boarding house. ‘Everyone on the street was relieved when we bought it – something was going to happen to that poor house that nobody loved’, laughs Anna. Thankfully many original elements remained, including marble fireplaces, cornices and lovely skirting boards. The doors were all original, as were the timber floors. ‘It was a raw, blank canvas, which was what we wanted’.

In the hallway, a sculpture by Ari Athans sits atop a mirrored plinth, chosen for ‘reflecting the light in a space which otherwise might feel too heavy and traditional’.

Martina Gemmola

With the exception of a wall in the kitchen coming down to open up the space, no major structural changes were made. Each of the rooms – including four bedrooms – are spread across one storey and flow off of a large, central hallway. The focus was on carefully restoring architectural features, polishing up the original floors and bringing the spaces back to life with colour and pattern.

Unlike Brisbane, which is sunny year-round and whose weather informs Anna’s projects there, Melbourne has seasons. In lieu of endless sunny days, the climate is, ‘moody and cold – with lots of browns and beautiful autumn leaves’, says Anna. This gave her a rare opportunity to create ‘warm and cosy spaces in moody colours’.