LUCINDA
Furnishing a new Melbourne apartment from scratch
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Lucinda's brother had purchased a newly completed apartment in Collingwood as a Melbourne base for visits from the US.
The apartment needed to comfortably accommodate family visits throughout the year while also feeling welcoming, stylish and lived-in. The brief was clear: beautiful but comfortable, thoughtfully furnished but not overly formal, and definitely not a showroom.
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The family had plenty of opinions about what they liked. What they needed was help turning those preferences into confident purchasing decisions.
We focused on identifying the key pieces needed to make the apartment comfortable and functional from day one, while recognising that some elements – particularly artwork and personal collections – would evolve over time.
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I developed mood boards and material palettes to help narrow the family's preferences and build confidence in the overall direction of the apartment.
Working from a shortlist of preferred retailers, I researched and recommended furniture, rugs, lighting, cushions, outdoor furniture and practical household items for the kitchen and bathrooms.
I also suggested temporary decorative pieces and artwork ideas that could help the apartment feel more settled while the family gradually found pieces they loved.
The result was a carefully considered furnishing plan that transformed an empty apartment into a comfortable and welcoming home base for family visits.
Furniture choices and decor recommendations mocked up inside Lucinda's apartment.
What was said
From the first time I met Gill, I felt like I was in very capable hands.
Her ability to listen and then make real something that I was hardly able to articulate was remarkable. She was confident in her taste but she understood that she was not designing something for herself, and I understood that I was not furnishing my own home.
She presented options that I may not have ordinarily considered, but that absolutely fit the brief. She was also very patient and empathetic and managed my uncertainty well.
After making our initial choices online, Gill came shopping with us to make sure it would all work. After hours of browsing in numerous stores, and after we had pretty much made our final choices, I said something like – maybe we have got this all wrong! I was so overwhelmed and unsure. She walked around the store with me, patiently entertaining alternatives and weighing up different options, until I came full circle to settle on our original choices. I was very grateful.
Gill, thank you so much for creating such a special place for us. We absolutely love it.
Lucinda, May 2025