Home of the week

Date: August 8, 2012 - 7:52AM

Andrea Millar

A sneak peek at Garth Allen's modern converted turn-of-the-century apartment.

Gath Allen's Darling Point home.

Who lives here?
Garth Allen, 39, head of buying for online-shopping clubs brandsexclusive.com.au and livingexclusive.com.au.

What kind of house is it?

A top-floor period apartment. It's one of two apartments in a converted turn-of-the-century mansion in Darling Point.

Miriam Hayes's renovated Victorian home.

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Home of the week

Miriam Hayes's renovated Victorian home.

View all 100 photos

Favourite space:

Lounge room. "I love walking into my lounge room. It's a roomy space with beautiful original features. The way the furniture is laid out also makes it a great place for entertaining. There are various couches, armchairs and ottomans in nooks for friends on which to perch and sip cocktails. It has an old-school supper-club feel that's both comfortable and formal.

When I'm not at work, my lounge room is a place of quiet work for me, or a place to enjoy the company of friends. The lounge room is a calm place, perhaps due to the warm colours, the blacks and browns.

I love the scale of the objects in here, such as the huge deer head on the wall and the black lampshade. I love that it's a unique-looking room and that it's very personal to me.

I worked in London for some years and the people I mixed with, some of whom were interior designers, had much more traditional taste than Australians do.

I saw rich tapestries draped from ceilings and on walls, quirky collectable objects and wall-to-wall antiques. They were lovely, eccentric homes and it probably explains the English-supper-club feel here.

Another influence, though, is my line of work. I'm responsible for knowing about and researching new trends for my role as a buyer, and my home reflects that. There are many contemporary pieces mixed in with antiques.

I'm not a designer; I've just always loved fashion and interiors - they've been parallel loves. I remember being 15 in David Jones fashion department and announcing to my parents that I wanted to be a buyer for DJs. I have since been a buyer for DJs and Top Shop in the UK, among other retailers.

My lounge room reflects the curious mind of a buyer, I think, one always researching new and upcoming trends, and not afraid to take risks."

Photography: Prue Ruscoe

From Sydney Magazine

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