'The house was pretty wild': Interior stylist Kerrie-Ann Jones' 1950s home makeover

There’s a distinct sense of joy in the Sydney home of renowned interior stylist Kerrie-Ann Jones.  Blessed with dress-circle water views, the reborn c1950 Sutherland Shire house presents as delightfully personalised as it is stylish.

In a world where crowd-pleasing interiors can at times lack authenticity and originality, this is a house that embodies its owner’s decorating mantra. And that makes for a well-dressed home indeed.

“I love a warm neutral palette with lots of different textures, and I like to take a curated approach,” Jones says.

“I can’t say that my style fits into one box – it’s a mix of mid-century influences with contemporary ones.”

Lavishly endowed with tactile organic materials and custom finishes, everything tells a personal story in the two-level abode that Jones shares with her husband Andrew and children, Poppy, 8, and Ari, 6. 

It’s a house, Jones confirms, that has been through a considerable transformation. That’s not to say, however, that when the co-host of the House of Style podcast first walked through the door four years ago, it presented as a monument to mundanity. Anything but, in fact.

“The house was built in 1950,” says Jones, who also runs the online styling school The Stylist Lab. “It was in its original condition when we saw it, complete with a yellow-and-black kitchen, silver disco wallpaper in the dining room and cobalt-blue tiles in the bathroom.

“The house was pretty wild, and I loved that the previous owner had such bold taste – and went for it!

“But, unfortunately, it was not in good condition, so we couldn’t hold on to those features.

“We had to completely gut the house, stripping everything back and starting again, although we did manage to keep the original pine floorboards, which we sanded back and put a matt finish on to make them more contemporary.

“We also added an extension to the front of the house to contain the kids’ bedrooms and a garage. The architecture was by Couvaras Architects, and the carpentry by ND Build. I did the interior design and styling, while my dad, Keith Sharpe, was the project manager.”

The father-daughter duo, together with their expert team, did a spectacular job.

From the Palladiana-style marble-offcut flooring in Jones’ en suite to the checkerboard amalgam of hues that bring Ari’s bathroom to vivid life, creativity flourishes within the walls of the home.

“I told the tilers to go nuts and create a random pattern for Ari’s bathroom,” Jones says. “That’s what they came up with!”

Certainly, this is a home in which show-stopping texture and pattern are the undisputed stars, backed by a whimsical yet harmonious support act of sculptural furniture, long-treasured works of art and beloved keepsakes.

Vintage decor items speak to the period character of the home, while other furnishings, such as the shapely walnut sofa and the Tasmanian oak sideboard in the living domain, were designed by Jones herself.

In almost every room, statement designer pieces sit comfortably alongside more budget-friendly items, as well as fortuitous online finds.

“I love to mix a hero item with mid to low-end pieces, or second-hand furniture off Gumtree or Facebook Marketplace,” Jones says.

“I’m not bound by a price point – I’m purely driven by the design and what I love. But, to me, furniture is like art, and it adds to your collection.

“And I love to display lots of little treasures that I’ve found over the years. I’m a stylist, so I can’t help myself!”

Life-affirming colour also makes a dramatic appearance.

Varying shades of verdant green – from the Dulux Ramona sage cabinetry in the kitchen to the forest and olive-green rugs in the living and dining zones – provide glorious vibrancy as well as consistency throughout the house.

“The warm, neutral palette is my base, but I do love green – I’m really drawn to it, so I introduced it throughout the home,” Jones says.

That said, the stylist admits that working on her own house proved more of a challenge than she could have imagined.

“There was some decision fatigue,” she concedes with a smile. “I wanted to push my creativity as far as I could with the design, but you can second-guess yourself at times.

“That was the biggest challenge – working through that.

“But there’s no right or wrong. It’s your personalisation of style, so you should always do what you love and make it your own.”

For Jones, the home’s latest incarnation signals a new – and, she firmly believes, lasting – chapter for her family.

“This is absolutely the forever home,” she says, adding: “We have no reason to leave. It’s everything we ever wanted – and more – in a home.”

Kerrie-Ann Jones’ top decorating tips

Click to open gallery

Colour your world

“Find a colour you connect with, and then it’s about testing out different tones of that particular colour to make it feel cohesive.”

Curate artworks with a salon wall

“My husband and I have collected art together for years, and the gallery wall in our living room is a fun way to display it. I’ve hung the art in a grid-like pattern with equal distance between each work.”

Waste not, want not

“For the vanity in the powder room, we used the left-over travertine onyx stone that we had from the fireplace mantel. Wherever we could in the home, we minimised waste and took a more sustainable approach.”