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Monday, April 20, 2009
Since receiving this month's copy of SA Life, I haven't been able to stop looking at this image. I defy anyone who's spent any time at all in Aussie shearing sheds not to be spell-bound. The familiar aroma came flooding back to me - a heady mixture of lanolin from the thousands of freshly clipped fleeces tossed onto the wooden floor, the buckets of perspiration dripped from the shearers & the rich, overpowering scent of the oil used to grease the mechanics of the shears. Just breath in deeply & I promise your senses will be spinning!
The shed sits on the Adelaide Hills property of Sue Tweddell. She & her late husband Ed purchased the 1840's property 11 years ago originally as offices for their Nepenthe wine business. The cottage was derelict, but as the restoration process moved on, Sue realised she wanted to make the property into a private family retreat. Following the sale of Nepenthe & Ed's sad & untimely death 3 years ago, Sue has spent considerable time here & finds it a wonderful place to entertain guests informally. She still keeps her town-home in Adelaide, but just a few minutes up the Freeway, the magical properties of Gumbank await her.
The downstairs living room features neutral tones, with a botanical theme. The antique wood duck decoys came from the U.S.
Sue didn't want to continue the neutral theme here in the winter sitting room, so she used a strong crimson colour give the room warmth & vitality.
Sitting perfectly in one of the old windows is this antique dressmaker's mannequin.
The small eat-in kitchen which Sue uses for informal candlelit dinners for friends & family. It was originally the cottage's pantry.
These West African wooden soldiers which Sue found here in South Australia line the corridor to the new bathroom.
The upstairs sitting room has sweeping views across the property's gardens.
Sue's used a mixture of antique Australian, European & Scandinavian pieces to lend an warm & inviting ambiance to her cottage.
The back verandah provides a dry spot for winter firewood.
The wide, shady verandahs are typical for an Aussie cottage of this vintage.
Images SA Life & Peter Hoare
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