Interior designers reveal their all-time favourite rooms and what exactly makes their creations stand out

Contemporary Cottage

The bones of this inner-city cottage along with its location were all the inspiration interior designer, Michael Bechara of Michael Bechara Design needed to sink his teeth into the project.

The project brief of this Sydney cottage involved doing a complete renovation, while honouring the existing footprint and the original façade. With the original building completely intact, Michael considered every internal surface in the design preparation of the sitting room in order to come up with the perfect interior scheme.

Staying true to the house’s history as well as the room’s existing atmosphere, features, colour and detailing led to Michael creating an aesthetic that appears effortless and unlaboured. “Although we did a complete transformation from the original home, there is no obvious distinction between the new and old which was imperative to my design process,” he says.

Deep, moody tones are at the core of the room’s design, with a relatively simple space transformed by contrasting textures, materials and the very occasional pop of colour. The minimal furniture was chosen both for its style and scale, which Michael stresses is especially important in small spaces.

Natural tones in the brickwork and metal add contrast and highlights, and are mirrored throughout the room with furniture and timeless artworks, seamlessly creating a unified design narrative in what is a completely functional space. “I like to use materials that will add another level of detail to the room,” he says.

The space is at once casual, sophisticated and elegant with a cozy and slightly masculine feel – a little slice of inner-city living that would make any guest feel in the mood for a whisky.