Inside the home that looks like something from the pages of Alice in Wonderland

Whimsical details and the bold use of colour make this family home look like something from the pages of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Chelsea Hing, the interior designer tasked with breathing new life into the two-storey Edwardian in Glen Iris in Melbourne’s south-east, likens the project to a “patchwork quilt” due to its eclectic nature.

In their original brief, the clients – a couple of first-time renovators with young children – commissioned Hing to square off a dogleg at the rear of the property, but the project soon crept down the hallway to encompass the entire ground floor of the building.

The house – untouched since the 1980s – suffered from poor spatial planning, so Hing’s first step was to adjust the floor plan.

A reconfigured open-plan kitchen and living area at the back of the house allowed for the addition of a new feature wall and custom-designed kitchen island.

The free-standing bench space, featuring barley twist legs hewn from American oak and a benchtop of gold-veined marble from Artedomus, helps to set the characterful tone of the interior.

The original corridor, which Hing describes as a poorly-lit “rabbit warren” of doors characteristic of houses built during the Edwardian era, was updated with textured panelling, sconces and the sealing off of an unused secondary doorway.

Double doors were installed at the end of the hallway to signal the transition into the communal living zones of the residence.

The forest green and rose colour palette – drawn from the original stained-glass windows at the entrance to the house – is used throughout, from the front rooms to the kitchen and the joinery surrounding the snug.

The snug – originally a thoroughfare to the laundry that doubled as an ironing room – exemplifies the project at its idiosyncratic best.

Tucked behind the bookshelves like a secret hideaway, the light-filled pocket is drenched in salmon pink from floor to ceiling – more womb than room.

“The idea of it being a surprise was the genesis of the idea,” explains Hing.

“Because the space was so small we were able to completely wrap the walls and ceilings in a single colour. The entire space is bathed in light, so it had to be a hot colour.”

The furniture palette reflects the rose and forest green shades used on the walls, augmented with the addition of gold and lavender tones.

Key pieces, such as the large custom-made dining table, were selected with the intention of replicating the look of family heirlooms that had been handed down through the generations.