'Turned it into a place I like': How one Canberran made his apartment his creative outlet

Behind each listing is a story, and almost all of them are worthy of a write-up. Perhaps it’s a home where, for decades, families have been raised. The children may have gone on to achieve great things, and parents are scaling back, as heart-wrenching as it may be, allowing young families to make core memories of their own.

For Mitchell Thompson, it’s the lure of an exciting new job prospect in Melbourne that’s taking him away from his beloved Inner North unit that encases so much of his personality in physical form. 

“I’ve lived here for over 13 years. It was a share house when it first started, but I’ve since turned it into a place I like – a creative space,” says Thompson. 

As his housemates began moving out, he opted not to replace them and instead started transforming each room into spaces that reflected him and his creative personality.

“It started with the lounge room because that’s the central space a home is built around – the lounge that faces the television and then everything surrounding it,” he explains. 

This is where Thompson began his art wall, an integral feature of the home that commands his living space and sets the tone for the rest of the house, which is incredibly quirky and fun. 

“At first I would go to op shops and buy second-hand art, but then I slowly built it up with local artists,” says Thompson. 

“It started with a Jess Cochrane piece, and I created the rest around that, buying pieces from local gallery exhibitions.”

Now, Thompson’s wall is adorned with over 30 pieces from local artists, including the likes of Luke Chiswell, Trevor Dickinson and Mimi Fairall.

As a fashion designer in his spare time, Thompson’s flair for art and creativity comes naturally and he’s able to pick pieces that work cohesively together, simply based on his taste. 

“Each piece has been a favourite of mine at one point,” he says. 

“What attracts my eye seems to naturally work together. I like a lot of colours, but the trick is to make sure the colours don’t clash and will work together. Some of the central pieces I have are more grey, black and neutral in tone,” he explains. 

Thompson works on his label Perpetually Five and his brand new label Overall This from his sewing room, which is filled with retro pieces.

“I call this my nostalgia room because it’s filled with nostalgic toys and knick-knacks from my childhood or collected from op shops over the years,” he says. 

Decorating his shelves are items like the Spice Girls Polaroid camera, Mr Squiggle and Blinky Bill toys and even a View-Master reel – the binocular-like toy that allowed you to view images on disk. 

“The whole house is a mix of new and vintage pieces and has a very retro feel, inspired by the 90s era and my childhood,” he says.

“My bedside table is an old children’s school desk and I have a lot of vintage lights around the place. My outdoor table was designed and made by one of my good friends, Josh Carmody. Every piece of furniture and art I’ve bought has been specifically bought for this home, so I’m really sad to say goodbye.”

Thompson says he’s also sad to be leaving Lyneham’s tree-lined streets, nearby ovals and parks and the array of nearby cafes. 

“My favourite is Hudsons of Dickson. It’s a basic cafe done so well,” says Thompson. 

“Then there’s Old Canberra Inn in Lyneham and Gang Gang cafe in Downer. I love Canberra and this home, so I’m really going to miss it.”