What are your top 3 tips when planning your build?
What's your best advice when planning a kitchen?
Which materials do you find the most effective in your projects?
Natural materials like travertine, marble, and handmade tiles are timeless and develop a beautiful patina over time. Proclima and Wedi Board aren't visible but provide significant benefits to our builds.
What do you like about Hepburn Hardware products?
We love the variety of colours and how all the styles complement each other beautifully.
Three main things to consider when designing a bathroom?
How do you ensure your projects stay on schedule and within budget?
Collaborating as a team from the beginning helps avoid budget overruns. Our in-house carpentry team and proactive planning ensure we stay on schedule.
What trends do you see emerging in home building and renovation?
We prioritise quality over quantity, preferring smaller, well-built spaces. Cabinetry is being designed to look like furniture, integrating with the surroundings.
Thank-you to Lauren and Tim for sharing their wealth of knowledge with us all.
HEAD TO https://kaikonstruct.com.au/ to learn more about their business.
We recently chatted with Kate Walker on her BARRINGTON project & got into the finer details with how she selects her hardware on her projects & important things to consider when selecting.
Q: Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the Barrington project?
A: We aimed to capture the essence of an English gentleman seaside manor while infusing it with modern conveniences. The facade was meticulously crafted to exude a sense of age and history, resembling a renovated heritage property rather than a new build.
Q: How would you describe the overall aesthetic of Barrington?
A: Barrington embodies a distinguished English seaside charm with a contemporary twist. The interior evokes a sense of nostalgia and romance, providing a welcoming retreat for a large family.
Q: What elements contribute to the masculine flavour of the design?
A: The design incorporates a blend of materials to bring a masculine sophistication to the space. Every detail is carefully considered, adding to the overall refinement and character of the home.
Q: Could you elaborate on the attention to detail in Barrington?
A: Attention to detail is paramount in Barrington. From the moment you enter through the front gates, you'll notice the meticulous craftsmanship and thoughtful design choices that enhance every space, creating a truly comfortable and inviting environment for its inhabitants.
Q: Can you talk us through your hardware selections?
A: Selecting cabinetry hardware for a project is never an afterthought or adjunct to a design. We see it as the jewellery that adds flair and a foundation.
The selection of finishes now available ensures that you can marry the hardware finishes to, or contrast them with, the tapware selection and the detailing in the joinery design.
The way each knob and handle feels to the touch, and the way the finish ages and patinas over time, is a very important consideration for every design project.
It’s so important to pay attention to those items that are used multiple times a day in a home, from the doorknobs to the tapware, to the handles and knobs on cabinetry doors and drawers.
This selection process leans into our design ethos of blending form and function to achieve the best possible outcome.
Q: What would you say were the top 3 things for someone to consider when selecting hardware?
Some excellent tips & info here we hope you enjoyed.
Thank you to Kate for sharing her insights & inspo.
Please feel free to reach out if you need any assistance with your hardware selections.
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Join us as we delve into the visionary minds behind the Hepburn Hardware X REN STUDIO Collaboration Collection with a fun & informative Q&A.
What sparked the idea for this exciting collaboration?
REN
I guess for us it was two fold – we were constantly on the lookout for the perfect streamlined handle for our clients, but could never find exactly what we were after to pair with our ranges of fronts. Our general approach is less is more and we always our clients to achieve the sophisticated outcome we love and know works well. The second reason – we love Hepburn Hardware’s approach to doing business, and their team! The treat their clients and staff very well, which strongly aligns with our business philosophy. We’ve known Alison for a good few years now and have become great friends, and our fronts usually require hardware, so it was a really logical, fun collaboration for us.
ALISON
Chatting with the girls about their clients needs and the limitations of us fulfilling that separately sparked the idea. We've been friends way longer than we've had our businesses, so it wasn’t hard to get the whole idea off the ground once we figured out. Cabinets and handles are the perfect pairing and working with Sarah and Hayley has been so nice due to everyones blunt directness of what will and won’t work. Less fluff and all action.
How would you describe the overall theme and vibe of this collaborative collection?
REN
The vibe is definitely a minimal one. We find simplicity in (nearly) all design elements is what speaks to us, our clients, and stands the test of time well. We knew exactly what we were looking to achieve in our first hardware collection, and this is it! We’re thrilled with how the range has come to life.
ALISON
This collection would be the most modern hardware we've done, so it plays to more pared back simple architecture, whilst staying very functional.
What makes this collaboration uniquely Australian?
REN
It’s been designed by Australian designers, specifically for Australian projects. We have a clear aesthetic and this range speaks to the simplicity and elegance we strive for in all of our product offerings. Proportion and finish were particularly important to us during the design process.
ALISON
Randomly this style of handle was one of the first pieces that caught my eye as timeless hardware when I first started this business 10 years ago. There is a book I have of Australian modernist homes of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s and it suits this aesthetic perfectly. So timeless and simple, however the finishes they come in make them really beautiful.
Any favourite collaboration moments or anecdotes during the creative process?
REN
Is it wrong to say design meetings over lunch?! Shoutout to Bam Bams… In all serious it’s been great to learn the intricacies of hardware – products we’ve long specified and recommended, and to have a deeper knowledge of the design and production process has been a great learning experience for our team.
ALISON
How can customers get their hands on this limited-edition collaborative collection?
REN
Through either the Ren Studio or Hepburn Hardware websites.
ALISON
The collection will be found on our website as well as Ren Studio’s. You can also order it through our stockists, which is also on our website.
Any plans for future collaborations or exciting projects on the horizon?
REN
Absolutely. I won’t spoil the surprise, but stay tuned…
ALISON
This was our first collaboration and it was a really interesting experience from start to finish. I’m always on the look out and asking people what they can’t currently find and how I might be able to fill that gap. There is so much room to move in the hardware industry, so watch this space as we start dive into new areas. I can’t wait to get it all out.
What was your most recent renovation project?
Our family home on the upper North Shore, Sydney. The original home on the block was a classic 1950's timber weatherboard single-story home. We moved in with a 6-month-old and a 3yr old then spent 4 years living in the home in its original state, (there was no toilet in the only bathroom, it was out the back in the laundry!) whilst I dreamt up many many design options for a complete overhaul of the home. If you plan to renovate rather than knockdown rebuild, living in the home before is such a must if you can, you get to understand how the light flows and moves across your block and in and out of the home throughout the seasons, how to trap the Winter sun for extra coziness and shield it from the heat of an Australian Summer, what works layout wise for you and your family and what may need updating
Was this your first reno?
No, we had previously completed a total renovation of our first home in Newtown. It was an original 1900's one bed single story semi (no kitchen to speak of at all, just a freestanding oven and a sink, no benches or cupboards, like camping, but we lived in it again for a few years before we started building) and we converted it into a two story three bed home, gutting the lot except the one common wall and front two rooms. This was a renovation done on a tight budget in cramped conditions (the house was 3.5m wide) but we had an amazing building team who made the process run so smoothly and I well and truly caught the renovation bug.
What drew you to Hepburn Hardware?
I had seen some of my favourite interior designers using Hepburn Hardware in their projects and I loved the modern twist on a classic that Hepburn offered with their designs. After ordering a few samples I was completely taken with the weight and feel of the handles, they not only looked gorgeous but I felt they could withstand the vigorous use my family was going to put them through
What advice would you give to first time renovators?
Open communication and a respectful relationship with your builder and trades is the absolute key to a successful project.
What is your personal interior design style?
Oh, very eclectic! I'm a real, if I love it I want it and will make it work somehow in my home type person. I am drawn to old worldly objects and furniture, the more rustic the better. I guess I'm a mix of vintage country Australian furniture, french antiques with layers of textured textiles, throw in a bit of chinoiserie print and I'm a tragic for tiger cane.
What would be your alter-ego dream home?
An Australian country style wrap around verandah weatherboard timber home, lots of fret work, choc full of decorative ceilings, picture rails, fireplaces and cozy nooks perched on a rolling green hill with bush to my left and sea views to my right.
Favourite Hepburn Products?
I absolutely adore our kitchen handles, The Surrey in Acid washed Brass finish which has aged so beautifully over the past year. We paired this with the Ascot knob and the two together just add the perfect touch of rustic warmth to our kitchen scheme.
Now the big one….did you have a budget and did you stick to it?
Haha.. Yes and No!
We started with a budget and as is often the case that budget blew out. It wasn't entirely out of our control, a lot of the budget changes came from us adjusting the scope of the building work with our very patient builder as we went, but some of it came from unfortunate unforseen building issues that can arise when renovating a 70 year old house. We were renovating during the timber shortage and crazy price rises of 2021/22 and once we started gutting the house, we discovered we had to rebuild most of the timber framework, a definite blow. But again we had an amazing flexible builder who allowed us to pull from other areas that were coming in less than budget to compensate for the blow out areas. We also pulled back on some items in the end that could wait to a later date, hopefully incoming 2024..
What would be one thing you would do differently?
Really the only thing that bugs me is the layout of my laundry. I didn't give it enough consideration when I was designing it and I would change it now if I had the chance to better suit how I use it, but having never had a proper laundry before I have forgiven myself for this design faux paux! I could also say, I should have been much more strict in sticking to my budget and not getting carried away with on the fly creative changes but then I wouldn't have the home I do today..
Builder: Chris Peat @riversidebuildinganddesign - Riverside Building and Design
Joinery: Tod Gribble @conceptdesignkitchens - Concept Designs Kitchen and Joinery
Kitchen Doors: @farmersdoors - Farmers Doors
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