Houzz Tour: An Eclectic Sanctuary Shows a Couple's True Colors
Travel takeaways, religious totems, thrift store finds and unusual compositions personalize a Melbourne home
Poppy and Scotty Gibson love coming home to their bright and airy cottage. "Our house is a little sanctuary in the middle of a bustling, activity-filled area. But as soon as we close the front door, there's this instant separation from all the noise and energy of the street," says Scotty, referring to Smith Street, a vibrant, eclectic shopping district in suburban Melbourne, Australia.
Poppy, a floral stylist, and Scotty, a plumber, spend most of their days and nights toiling away at their eponymous Pop&Scott Workshop Cooperative, where the crafty, artsy and trade-oriented gather to exchange ideas, build furniture and work on projects. Although they love the community feel of their warehouse co-op, they crave the relaxing vibe of their home after a day of working with their hands.
"There's all this frenetic energy at work and even near our cottage; Scotty and I have such big personalities as it is. It's just nice to come home and relax with our cat and dog after a long day," says Poppy.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Poppy and Scotty Gibson
Location: Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia
Size: 650 square feet
That's interesting: The house was built in the early 1800s. "It was one of the early Collingwood workers' cottages in the area, home to laborers building the city center of Melbourne," says Scotty.
Poppy, a floral stylist, and Scotty, a plumber, spend most of their days and nights toiling away at their eponymous Pop&Scott Workshop Cooperative, where the crafty, artsy and trade-oriented gather to exchange ideas, build furniture and work on projects. Although they love the community feel of their warehouse co-op, they crave the relaxing vibe of their home after a day of working with their hands.
"There's all this frenetic energy at work and even near our cottage; Scotty and I have such big personalities as it is. It's just nice to come home and relax with our cat and dog after a long day," says Poppy.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Poppy and Scotty Gibson
Location: Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia
Size: 650 square feet
That's interesting: The house was built in the early 1800s. "It was one of the early Collingwood workers' cottages in the area, home to laborers building the city center of Melbourne," says Scotty.
An eclectic composition fills a massive stretch of white wall above the sofa. Poppy found the original oil painting at a garage sale. Artist and friend Jessica Tremp gave the couple the taxidermy squirrel. The other trinkets and religious totems came from trips to Mexico and the United States.
Tip: A few accessories and decor can give your space a worldly, global spin. Meaningful tokens and souvenirs mixed in with this home's eclectic style work.
Tip: A few accessories and decor can give your space a worldly, global spin. Meaningful tokens and souvenirs mixed in with this home's eclectic style work.
The adjacent living room sofa was a gift from Scotty to Poppy. "I had my eye on the sofa for a few weeks already; one day he just surprised me with it," she says.
Floor lamp base: from Scotty's aunt; turquoise shade: thrift store
Floor lamp base: from Scotty's aunt; turquoise shade: thrift store
"I am always picking flowers, leaves and branches from roadsides and friendly neighborhood gardens," says Poppy. She also heads to the Melbourne Flower Trade Market twice a week.
The couple filled a lonely corner with a motley crew of musical instruments, vinyl records, a crate box and a jar of freshly picked euphorbias. Scotty, who comes from a family of fortune tellers and magicians, indulges his creative side with music and plays the didgeridoo.
Tip: Bring your musical instruments out of their cases. Here, instruments fill this corner and reveal bits about the homeowners' heritage and individuality; they also add to and extend the woodsy, organic character of the space.
Tip: Bring your musical instruments out of their cases. Here, instruments fill this corner and reveal bits about the homeowners' heritage and individuality; they also add to and extend the woodsy, organic character of the space.
Poppy designed the dining table, and the couple built the table together. It has a steel grate through the middle, which she fills with pots of fresh herbs. The eat-in kitchen hosts intimate gatherings of "food, wine and great friends," she says. Larger get-togethers happen in the exterior courtyard, where a table and benches host summer cookouts and what Scotty fondly calls "good times."
The couple houses their china cabinet in the unused recessed space of their fireplace — just one of the ways that they save precious floor space in the kitchen.
The couple houses their china cabinet in the unused recessed space of their fireplace — just one of the ways that they save precious floor space in the kitchen.
An industrial light hovers over the dining table and herb garden. A red tin jar houses bamboo branches and picks up on the scarlet hue of the light pendant and freshly picked flowers.
A portait overlooks the eat-in kitchen table. "I found it for just a dollar, and I can't imagine the space without it. It's one of my most prized possessions," says Poppy.
Tip: Remember that one-of-a-kind artwork can up any home's artful composition — even if the artwork only costs a dollar. Good taste trumps expensive and impersonal any day.
A portait overlooks the eat-in kitchen table. "I found it for just a dollar, and I can't imagine the space without it. It's one of my most prized possessions," says Poppy.
Tip: Remember that one-of-a-kind artwork can up any home's artful composition — even if the artwork only costs a dollar. Good taste trumps expensive and impersonal any day.
Paella nights happen frequently in the spring and summer. "Poppy's been called one of the best paella makers in Melbourne," says Scotty.
The couple decorated their bedroom sparingly. "When we moved to our little cottage, we had to downsize significantly. It's been a lesson in prioritizing and surrounding ourselves only with things that we truly love around the house," says Scotty.
Laid out and folded piles of blankets in different prints and patterns lend the space a cozy, warm feel.
Tip: Invest in your blankets and throws so you can use them for years — and for uses outside of keeping you warm on a winter's night. Cascade them over a wingback chair, or drape one lengthwise over a chair arm or across the end of the bed, just like Poppy and Scotty have done in their bedroom.
Tip: Invest in your blankets and throws so you can use them for years — and for uses outside of keeping you warm on a winter's night. Cascade them over a wingback chair, or drape one lengthwise over a chair arm or across the end of the bed, just like Poppy and Scotty have done in their bedroom.
Cacti, succulents and creeping fig weaving through a gas mask lend the exterior courtyard a lush appeal and reveal a bit of the couple's unusual approach. "As a florist, I work and truly love surrounding myself with texture and color all day. Scotty and I like to have fun and don't take ourselves too seriously. I think this comes through in our home," says Poppy.
Morning Glory peeks out of a crack in the entry. "It grows like a weed and covers most of the back of the house. Even though it's a pest, I really love how it creeps in. It was one of the reasons why I wanted to live here in the first place," says Poppy.
The natural reach and bend of the potted plants and the vintage artwork give this living room corner some movement.