HISTORIC REVIVAL

An Arts and Crafts home located in an iconic area of Tasmania has been given a new lease of life with William Morris prints and a moody palette

- ALI HEATH 

Step over the threshold of Ethelmont Rise, the beautiful home of Emma and Stuart Burgess, and you are immediately immersed in a sense of nostalgia. Timeworn pieces fill this special property – from the mustard lampshades that are original to the house to the handsome antique dresser, a family heirloom that is now filled with warm yellow vintage French pottery from Poterie du Soleil. ‘The ochre tones have informed the colour palette throughout this house,’ says Emma.

The hillside Arts and Crafts house has picturesque views down to the River Derwent and across to Sandy Bay from the front, while from the back, you look up to dramatic Mount Wellington. ‘The mountain and water influence the feel of each day,’ says Emma. Built originally in 1929 on the Ethelmont Estate owned by Charles Ernest Webster, the house was first lived in by the Clennett sisters, followed by an elderly couple. ‘You can feel the palpable sense of history: spaces had been left largely untouched and our renovation has been very respectful of the Arts and Crafts architecture.’