Art deco delight in beachside Glenelg
An art deco unit set in a 1936 building by the sea has been lovingly restored in an award-winning renovation that’s all about authenticity, glamour and attention to detail.
Buying an investment property was always a long-term goal for Greg and Leisha Bond, but the impetus to act intensified when the Adelaide property market began to go stratospheric post-Covid.
The savvy couple was happy to purchase a “renovator’s delight” given that Greg is an architect and the director of his own firm, Atelier Bond.
But finding just the right apartment at the right price was proving difficult as the couple began to actively look in 2021.
“The house prices were going crazy,” Leisha says. “We were looking online at cream brick, strata title units and they were selling for way more than we were willing to pay and they had low ceilings and bad orientation.
“So, I just said to Greg, ‘if we’re paying this price, why don’t we do something completely different?’.”
The couple began to widen the search and happened upon a light-filled art deco apartment in Glenelg South. The eight-unit block, Bristol Court, was built in 1936 and is positioned just one street back from the beach.
The light-filled dining room showcasing the vintage Arrben chairs and limed solid oak dining table custom made by Atelier Bond
The kitchen features the striking Verde Oceania marble from CDK Stone and the Nightworks “Tasman” triple pendant light.
It was love at first sight for Greg and Leisha when they inspected the property, particularly for Leisha who has always loved the art deco aesthetic.
The unit had last been renovated in the 1990s but, before they had even purchased the property, Leisha immediately began visualising the project of her dreams.
“We just loved it as soon as we saw it, and to be honest most people would have walked in here and thought it didn’t need to be renovated. It was very 1990s,” Leisha says. “But I did the classic thing you shouldn’t do with real estate, especially an investment; I got emotional about it and started to picture what we could do to the place.
“Greg loved it, too, because it’s got all the right things in terms of spatial planning, the natural light, the high ceilings. They don’t make apartments like this anymore.”
You might like
The couple bid successfully at auction in September 2021, then rented the unit out for a year before beginning the renovations in late 2022.
The aim of the project was to create a comfortable contemporary interior that reimagined the glamorous art deco origins of the unit.
While Leisha had enormous input into design choices, the renovation was also a chance for the Atelier Bond team to showcase their talents, including Greg, interior designer Airlie Lang (formerly of Enoki Design and Georgie Shepherd Interior Design) and creative lead Ben Ramsey.
The bathroom vanity has been created with the same stone as the kitchen benches, Emerald Haze Quartzite from CDK Stone.
The block was built in 1936 and is just one street from the beach.
“We wanted to showcase to clients what the team could do with a more adventurous brief,” Leisha says. “We wanted to take a few risks with colour, be a bit bolder and see what could be achieved in creating a modern art deco space.”
First up, Leisha, a media professional, and Atelier Bond’s studio manager Kellie French signed up for an art deco walking tour around beachside Glenelg with the local chapter of the Art Deco & Modernism Society of Australia.
“That was fascinating just learning about the history of all these beautiful art deco buildings around here,” says Leisha. “We also wanted to make sure that we did justice to the era of the unit. The thing is you don’t want to do it in a kitschy, themed way, you want to do it in a tasteful way that still feels modern.”
Leisha worked in close collaboration with Airlie on all interior decisions, and would kick start the process by fossicking the internet for authentic art deco furniture and curios of the 1930s and ’40s. Leisha also trawled sites such as Globe West, 1st Dibs, Estilo Furniture + Lighting, and Temple & Webster in search of modern pieces that reflected the art deco aesthetic.
Airlie would then edit Leisha’s lists of loves and together the duo came up with workable, affordable and beautiful solutions.
Travel also proved a great inspiration for the interiors. Leisha and Greg have lived in a variety of overseas cities, including Dubai, and have travelled extensively around the Middle East.
Replacing a door with this curtain (Abode Interiors New York Collection) adds to the art deco feel of the unit.
This striking cabinet positioned in the entry area houses the laundry and has been painted in Dulux “Black Water” high gloss.
So when Leisha found a vase online at the beginning of the renovation process featuring an Egyptian lotus motif, she knew this would form the inspiration for many of the interior design decisions.
Today, the apartment also showcases bespoke bedheads deigned by Airlie – the Bonnenuit “Chloe” bedhead in the master bedroom and the James Dunlop “Ticking Stripe – Duckegg” in the second bedroom.
The ticking material was based on a reference photo Leisha gave to Airlie.
“The image was of a Dahabiya boat on the Nile in Egypt,” Leisha says. “Airlie then found this red and white ticking fabric which references the sails.”
An overarching theme tying the space together is the use of art deco green throughout – from the kitchen cabinetry featuring Dulux Misty Moss and the stunning green marble splashback (CDK Stone’s Verde Oceania) to the Emerald Haze Quartzite used in the island bench and the bathroom vanity – green is the theme.
Subscribe for updates
The centrepiece in the lounge room is the Sarah Ellison “Muse” sofa in green, above which hangs another showstopper – the “Belleville” onyx pendant light from Coco Republic. A large glossy green cabinet in the entry hall (in Dulux Black Water High Gloss) cleverly conceals all the laundry hardware, including washing machine and dryer.
Greg and Leisha, with their children Owen and Ruby, lived in the unit for one summer after the renovation was complete, but it is now used as a holiday rental property.
The bespoke dining table was also designed by Airlie and was made by local firm Agostino & Brown, while Leisha discovered the Arrben leather dining chairs from an online vintage store.
“There was an art deco revival in the 1980s and these are from that era, authentic chairs made by Italian designer Calligaris. I got the lot for $1000,” she says. “We tried to balance the budget by spending more on items such as lighting, and then cutting costs in other areas.”
It was also Airlie’s design inspiration to add panelling to the walls in the lounge area and the bedroom doors, something Leisha wasn’t sure about initially.
“It’s very well to say, ‘trust the designer’ and I have to say, this was such a good lesson for me,” she says. “I questioned whether it was worth the panelling, which was about an extra $1000, but Airlie felt really strongly about this, and she was right.
“The panelling is something that people always comment on and it does elevate the space. It was an inexpensive thing to do, but it was that designer eye that could foresee the impact.”
Other standouts include the bathroom makeover with an original art deco light from Paris that Leisha found on Etsy, the choice of Piccollo marble floor, which reminded the couple of the cobbled-stone streets of Paris, and the smooth contours of Venetian plastering on the walls.
The master bedroom features the custom made Bonnenuit “Chloe” bedhead, and was inspired by the sails of an Egyptian Dahabiya boat.
The second bedroom has the James Dunlop “Ticking Stripe – Duckegg” bedhead.
Leisha and Greg enlisted Crew Built to project manage the build, and it’s the attention to detail in this unit that really brings it to life – each interior choice has been carefully curated and included because it adds a layer of both art deco authenticity and glamour.
From the big decisions, including lighting, mirrors and the large furniture pieces, down to the smaller items such as Lo & Co handles and jacket hooks – every piece plays its part and adds to the success of this art deco dynamo.
Leisha and Greg, who live in Dulwich, moved into the apartment at the end of 2023 with their children Ruby and Owen, staying for two months over summer.
They hosted Christmas here and spent summer evenings walking on the beach, immersing themselves in the joy this renovation project has created.
“It felt really special,” Leisha says. “If there was another bedroom, we would have stayed, but we’ve got two kids, a dog and a cat. But they had to drag us out, because we just loved it.”
The property is now available for holiday rental under the name Tender is the Stay, managed by My Easy BNB. Leisha says it has been rented out consistently by both those who want to be by the beach and those who want an art deco experience.
Now, reflecting on the renovation process, the work and the financial commitment they’ve signed up for, is another project on the cards for this creative duo?
“It’s kind of like childbirth, isn’t it?” Leisha says. “At the end of it you think I’ll never do that again, but then you do.
“We are absolutely thrilled with what we have created here, it is a testament to the Atelier Bond team and what you can create in a smaller space.
“We just love the fact that others can come and enjoy it now as much as we do.”
This article first appeared in the 2024 issue of SALIFE Premium Property magazine.
