Rare Beauty
The owners of this spectacular Sydney home have an extraordinary vehicle in their garage.
Natural beauty surrounds the home of Sydneysiders Kylie Bates and Michael Powell. In addition to breathtaking water and bush views, their home sits on a sloping block that includes an exquisite sandstone rockface. In fact, when they came to build their home, their architect Cameron Jones recommended celebrating this natural piece of sculpture and designed the house around it. This extraordinary sandstone wall is now a much loved, and much talked about, feature of this gorgeous home.
The peaceful property sits on the point of the Burraneer peninsula, with spectacular views over Port Hacking to the Royal National Park beyond. Massive glass sliding doors make the most of the outlook while waves lap below, giving the occupants the sensation of being at one with nature.
Kylie and Michael, who live here with their 14-year-old daughter Billie, wanted their home to be warm and inviting, with the feel of a luxury resort. They engaged local interior designer Emma Buchan of EB Interiors to help create the desired look and feel. Emma used a palette of raw and natural materials such as timber and stone in a neutral tones, with pops of blue to reference the bay. Texture, always very important, is used here as a tool to soften the clean-lined architecture.
Like their home, the couple’s family car, a 4-litre twin-turbo V8 Lamborghini Urus, is luxurious yet understated. Urus, the Italian marque’s new SUV offering, is not the company’s first foray into off-road toughness. Between 1986 and 1992, Lamborghini’s range included the LM002, also known as the ‘Rambo Lambo’. Only 328 of these off-roaders were produced in that period, making it one of the rarest vehicles on the planet.
What do you like about living here?
We have always loved this area. It is a great community and there are plenty
“There is nothing better than coming home. It’s our retreat from the world.” Kylie Bates, owner
of excellent local cafes to visit and breathtaking coastal walks to enjoy too. That said, there is nothing better than coming home to our peaceful oasis – it’s a real retreat from the world. Michael and I enjoy sitting on our balcony with a coffee in the mornings and watching the everchanging view of the water, the sandbars and the Royal National Park.
What are the interior highlights?
I enjoy how natural light is reflected into every main room of the house. I also love our stairwell which is a sculptural centre in the home and connects all three levels. EB Interiors worked hard to design a stairwell that was organic and soft, and reflected the shapes of the view.
What are your favourite pieces?
The entry light is my favourite piece in the whole house. You can see it from the outside looking in, from the entry and also from the first floor. The soft circles inside offset all the straight lines of the architecture and make it feel more homely.
What inspired the style for this home?
I relied on Emma and her team for all the creative direction and styling of the house. She and I share a love for timeless design that still has a lot of personality; she absolutely achieved that feel here.
Does the Lamborghini Urus cause a stir?
Yes! I was driving it while dropping Billie off at school and it certainly turned a lot of heads. It’s new and quite different in a country saturated with SUVs. It is fast, powerful and stylish.