IN THE PINES
Nestled in the Alps and overlooking spectacular Lake Como and the mountains beyond, an imposing 1910 villa glides into 21st-century life thanks to its design-savvy Australian owners
GEORGE CLOONEY IS LAKE COMO’S most famous resident and chose a front-row seat to savour one of the world’s most spectacular views — but Australian Andrea Duff and her partner, Robert Schwamberg, preferred the dress circle when they bought this handsome Art Nouveau villa. The peripatetic pair arrived in northern Italy in 2015, having just completed a crossing of the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean on their yacht. “We were wondering what to do next,” says Duff, a former fashion stylist. “We had spent many years sailing in the Mediterranean, and we had played the ‘Could we live here?’ game.”
Previously, Duff and Schwamberg had been on a five-country motorbike tour of the Alps region that included Lake Como. A Harley-Davidson also brought Clooney here, back in 2001 — and like the US actor, they were seduced by the region’s beauty and bountiful seasonal produce.
Living beside the water was less appealing. “Being right on the lake didn’t work for us,” says Duff. “There is only one main road and a lot of congestion during summer. Many homes are built onto the road, and you step out into the traffic. We needed more space and less noise, so we headed for the hills. It’s quieter but with easy access to the lake.” They found Villa Casasco, a 1910 Liberty-style, five-bedroom villa tucked into a valley between Lake Como and Lake Lugano just over the border in Switzerland. Originally built as the local mayor’s home, it had “grand and impressive proportions”, says Duff. “So we have the space and views of the mountains and nature on our doorstep.” Each of its three levels is a generous 200 square metres, while its sprawling grounds extend into woodlands with pines, larches and chestnut trees. “It felt really good,” she says. “We could imagine ourselves in the space. It didn’t feel too grand or big for the two of us.” It also had good bones and was structurally sound. “Not having local knowledge and language skills, we did not want to undertake a major renovation.” However, their dream retreat came with three glaring faults. First, the kitchen and hallway were poky and needed a more effective flow. Elsewhere, the problem was too much flow — as the house was built directly onto the slab with no foundations, damp had seeped into the downstairs walls and floors over the years.
Most jarringly, it suffered what could best be described as serious citrus overload. “The villa was painted the most lurid possible shade of limoncello,” Duff recalls. “The inside walls and ceilings were the same oppressive shade, or orange — headache-inducing colour combinations. And the carpet was… yellow!”
During a three-month renovation, she and Schwamberg levelled and retiled the downstairs with a hexagonal porcelain tile, to help deal with moisture build-up, and also repaired the plaster walls with a breathable waterproof membrane. They removed a wall between the kitchen and the hallway to let in more light, too, with a steel beam required to support the five-metre-wide opening. Elsewhere, they modernised “dated and cheap” finishes and painted both inside and out white. “We had to get the place back to white, to understand how the property worked,” says Duff. She replaced 1960s orange bubble glass on the internal doors with smart bevelled glass and changed all the door and window hardware to a more substantial nickel, in keeping with the style of the villa. She did retain some zany features, such as “the mad tiled bathrooms that I have come to love. They are so 1970s, and it’s crazy that I am continually adding things to make them even more dramatic”.
Duff then furnished the home in what she terms “modern vintage — a mix of Danish and Italian finds from our travels in Europe. There is a bit of a black-and-white theme going on, which is grounding but also gives impact”. She included a nod to her roots, too. “Australian design favours relaxed and liveable spaces — I love beautiful things, but comfort takes priority”. Similarly, the outdoor lifestyle Down Under reflects the way the garden was conceived, “with places to stay in and out of the sun”.
The couple spends a lot of time outdoors during the summer, but they bunker down in the brisk winters. “We put the Art Deco club chairs in front of the fireplace and layer up with rugs and cushions for a cosy, layered look,” says Duff. “We do more entertaining during winter, and then the focus is the kitchen, which is large enough for extra chefs and people watching the preparations.”
Now even more people can share the fun. Duff and Schwamberg frequently return to Australia to visit family and friends and check up on their farm in Byron Bay. That’s when they rent out Villa Casasco. And what an experience it is. “The views are just breathtaking, from amazing sunsets to crazy summer thunderstorms,” says Duff. “We love watching the clouds go by or the activity on the lake. It’s all so beautiful.” George Clooney doesn’t know what he’s missing.