Elaine & Viktor
Mt Dandenong
What brings you to the Hills ?
We were looking for a larger studio space to run our business out of (kalinowski.com.au) that was possible to have in town.
We now have home and studio just meters apart.
We also wanted to live in a village, to be surrounded by beauty and still have access to the city.
Mt Dandenong gives us this, from the minute we arrived we felt that we had arrived home, both in the house and the community.
Can you describe your home style or any unique features it has that makes it special to you ?
Built in 1940 it has beautiful art deco features such as decorative high ceilings, lead light windows, wood paneling and a spacious feel to it with plenty of light.
It needed a lot of work when we bought it but we had fallen in love so regardless of two building inspectors telling us not to buy it, we did.
Then covid came along which in some ways helped give us some time to renovate and five years on were almost done and loving living in the house and working in our purpose built studio.
Are there any historical aspects or stories of your home that you know about ?
The house was built in 1940 by wealthy people from Toorak as their weekend house.
It had a butler / drivers residence next to it which is no longer there. The family would come for weekends and have parties. Then in the seventies another family purchased it and added the back extension on.
We are only the third owners and have added the studio, renovated and repaired the house. We feel proud to be the current custodians of this beautiful place.
Are there any particular themes, colour or elements throughout your home that reflect your personality or interests ?
One of the strongest features of our home that reflects us is the kitchen.
It’s black cabinetry set off with copper benches, splash back and drawer handles made by us. It’s very personal having our touch embedded so strongly in the home, its one of our art works !
“one of the strongest features of our home that reflects us is the kitchen, it’s very personal having our touch embedded so strongly in the home, it’s one of our art works”
Are there any particular things that have inspired your interior design choices ?
The house is black with white trims, its very striking. We chose to continue with the black theme throughout the inside of the house in some furniture pieces, the kitchen cabinets, and window frames.
Also the studio is black of course !
“The house is black with white trims, it’s very striking”
What do you love about your home ?
We love so many things about our house, the look, the feel.
It’s always felt like a happy house with a good vibe and people enjoy coming here and spending time.
The garden is romantic and a little wild, we feel surrounded by green and then occasionally the clouds fly past which is even more magical !
What is your favourite Season ?
Love all the seasons in the hills but winter has its own romance when we can rug up and light the fire.
What do you love about living in the Hills ?
We love being surrounded by the green trees, the connection to nature, the wildlife including the occasional visit by wombats and echidnas in the garden.
We love the villages that are scattered through the hills, each with their own personality.
We love the climate, cooler in summer and colder in winter!
And the community is so strong, in this different environment we depend on each other. We moved here not long before the big storm and that time taught us so much about what the hills people are made of !
How does living in the Hills influence your daily life or routine ?
We live next to the village of Mount Dandenong and as we work from home this allows us to walk to the shops for milk, for a coffee, for dinner, to the post office and even to the hairdresser! we really enjoy the daily walks to the village and not getting into the car, meeting the locals and feeling part of a community.
Walking to get the milk is always a pleasure, it gives us the sense of time, its feels like life is a little slower.
Do you have a favourite place to visit in the Hills (walk / cafe / shop) ?
We frequent many places in the hills but some of our regulars are:
Walking to Kellys pub for a beer
Going to White Ginger Thai for a meal
Always shop for Christmas presents in Epoche in Kallista and have lunch at the Tearooms there
We adore the Cameo cinema in Belgrave where we often see films... it’s such a relaxed and friendly place and we feel really at home there