5 Trends for Queensland Homes

Written for Intrim Mouldings by Rachael Turner, Front Porch Properties.

When asked about Queensland trends, I can honestly say that I’m not one to necessarily follow any trend, but I have definitely seen some shifts happening over the past few years. Here are my pick of 5 trends that are happening now in Queensland homes.

Trend 1: Moving away from a big butlers pantry

 At one stage, it was desirable to have a big butlers pantry and large laundry space, but I have noticed a real change of late with homeowners.  They start out thinking they want the big space, but what they are actually leaning towards is more simple, comfortable and easy relaxed living and this is not necessarily gained through actual square meterage, rather, it is gained through clever, practical and well thought out design.  So whilst these spaces were popular requests 10 years ago,  people have actually realised that it’s just another kitchen to clean and are quite often opting to just have a separate pantry within the kitchen that incorporates some clever shelving, with some bench space for smaller appliances.  A great suggestion for a smaller pantry/cupboard, would be to have some gorgeous French doors opening to your pantry cupboard.  This will create a lovely visual interest to your space, whilst allowing your main kitchen to feel more open and less cluttered. I am a firm believer that a space such as this can be both aesthetically pleasing as well as practical.

Front Porch Properties Brookfield Coastal Farmhouse 

Trend 2: The rise of the home office and multi-purpose spaces

Another trend on the rise are home offices/multi-purpose spaces, this is sometimes brought about by converting an unused garage space or it can be a totally new addition in the form of an independent structure with it’s own self-contained living quarters.  I really like trying to implement these kinds of additions/conversions for my clients where possible, as anything that can make your home more of an investment is money well spent in my opinion.  Whether this area forms part of the house or is a totally detached dwelling on the property, there is definitely a strong movement towards a fully self-contained space which can be used for either multi-generational living to house your elderly parents for example, a large work from home office, or it could be fully income generating in the form of an Airbnb rental property to assist in paying off your mortgage faster.  There are a lot of possibilities these days and I always love to see how people are evolving in the way they interpret their homes.  What is nice about such a space, is that we are able to design it to work cohesively with the main house, so it feels like it has always been there.  A great example of making your work area blend cohesively with your home can be seen in our Brae Homestead Project where we incorporated detailed wall paneling from Intrim, which allowed for this really gorgeous yet practical workspace to transition beautifully with the main area of the home.

Trend 3 : Simple detailing over ornate grandeur

People seem to be steering way from some of the more opulent, ornate grandeur of past years, and are rather opting for more simplistic detailing.  A good example of this is the coffered ceiling, traditionally more intricate in detail, we have had several requests for a more paired back and relaxed take on the traditional version and we are excited to be working on 2 new versions of this ceiling feature on current projects.  VJ wall panelling are a classic and have been popular right throughout building history, they are still as popular as ever, particularly because of their warmth and character that they bring to a room.

         
Carrara Cape Cod                                                                                Brookfield Coastal Farmhouse 

Trend 4: A move back to a traditional enclosed shower

Thinking ahead, I am actually anticipating my own trend for bathrooms coming up.  Over the past few years we have been doing a lot of baths and showers behind fixed panes of glass to create a wet room vibe, but recently you would have seen our Cape Cod master ensuite completed on our socials, and I guess I am really anticipating a resurgence in this trend for a more traditional enclosed shower. This format of bathroom can easily be adapted to suit any style of home through your choice of finishes, be it farmhouse, contemporary or Hamptons.  I really feel that an enclosed shower is not only beautiful, but it makes practical sense too as the steam will stay enclosed. You then apply beautiful detailing like Wainscoting wall panelling to the bathroom walls instead of using floor to ceiling tiles.

   
Front Porch Properties Carrara Cape Cod                                 Source: Bathroom by Design Duo Alisa & Lysandra  

Trend 5: We want less maintenance in our homes

Lastly, my clients are always looking at ways to save on maintenance wherever they can, be it through the use of materials such as composite decking or low maintenance cladding, but especially with their windows.  Windows are one of the areas where I am more than happy to suggest the use of both wood and aluminum within the same home. For areas highly exposed to the sun, I see no harm in utilising aluminum frames, which will stand the test of time and save you laborious and costly hours in maintenance, but, I do always insist on trimming the aluminum window frame out with beautiful detail as seen here in the daughter’s ensuite at our Cape Cod project.  The trim around the windows can be more detailed as shown here or it can be paired back to create more of a simple framed finish, it’s really up to the individual homeowner. Selecting a pre-primed timber helps ensure the timber looks great for years to come.  Intrim have so many profiles to choose from, so I highly recommend browsing the website as they always have great insitu images to help you with style choices.

     

Rachael Turner is the owner of Front Porch Properties, a Brisbane based construction business that specialise in classic, timeless, American inspired renovations and new builds.