Est Magazine Issue 32 | From the Heart

FASHION FORWARD

ARCHITECT Luigi Rosselli Architects

INTERIOR DESIGN Alwill Interiors

PHOTOGRAPHY Prue Ruscoe

WORDS Megan Rawson

Australian fashion and European style fuse to form a modern heritage home for designer Camilla Freeman-Topper and her tribe of five.

Camilla Freeman-Topper’s Sydney home is as modern and impeccably tailored as the clothes she creates. One half of the famed Camilla and Marc Australian luxury fashion label, Freeman-Topper’s 1930s Bellevue family home has become an extension of her innate style and creative ethos.

Romaine Alwill of Alwill Interiors was handed the brief to build a modern overlay to encompass a functional family home — but one that pushed boundaries in terms of finishes and forms, celebrated space for art and created a timeless, edgy and inspiring design. Along with all this, Alwill was guided by the home’s architecturally grand scale and strong heritage features.

Naturally, Freeman-Topper voiced her own strong aesthetic — as did the architect Luigi Rosselli of Luigi Rosselli Architects (LRA) — meaning Alwill’s design was the ‘Interior glue’ to weaving everything together in her signature classic yet contemporary approach. It sounds a little complicated, but all it took was a trip to Milan during Salone del Mobile for Freeman-Topper and Alwill to define their shared style.

Quickly realising that they had a symbiotic vision of a minimal northern European feel, they arrived home with plenty of inspiration. Freeman-Topper and Alwill set to work, editing the aesthetic to create their own unique take. Drawing on references from the work of Joseph Dirand and Vincent van Duysen alongside 1930s and ’40s Scandinavian homes, a beautiful juxtaposition between minimal interior forms and richly decorated architectural elements took shape.

The home’s central centrepiece is its sculptural staircase designed by LRA. Establishing a spine that ribbons through all three-storeys, its burnished brass handrail contrasts against the creamy Italian stucco lustre and delicate Bocci 21 Series ceramic pendants. Not only does it serve to set the tone of the overarching neutral palette, it’s a repeated curved form found throughout.

Exploring a raw, tonal palette; natural materials such as travertine, hemp, linen and leather take centre stage. The collection of furniture and lighting pieces — many of which were spotted in Milan — highlight the refined, European aesthetic. From the classic Eames DCW chairs, low-lying, deep green leather Baxter Panama Bold sofa, to the fluted custom olive-green leather bed with brass detailing — it’s all part of the decorative interplay between texture and tone.

Set in the centre of the family home, the kitchen space is separated from living spaces by its broadline, fluted glass, steel doors. Burnished brass finished joinery, marble and leather make it practical but edgy while the Yokato Brodware mixer, Viabizzuno Sul Sole Va pendant and Mater High Stools add sophistication.

A reflection of the Camilla and Marc label, this richly layered family home is timeless, modern and tailored. Freeman-Topper, together with Alwill Interiors and LRA, have added their own modern narrative to this home’s lasting legacy.