ele Home & Interiors: The Bay Beachhouse -

This beautiful beach house was originally featured in issue 1 of ele Magazine. Click here to subscribe and receive the latest issue direct to your door.

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Words & Images by Katie Skinner, Editor – ele HOME

Jaime and Dave would often holiday at Hervey Bay on the Fraser Coast in Australia when their children, Tom and Ivy, were little. When a work opportunity came along to relocate to Hervey Bay, they jumped at the chance to raise their children in a quiet, beachside community. When they first viewed what was to become The Bay Beachouse, they fell in love with its grand, yet informal layout and the abundance of space and potential.

Jaime and Dave saw a home with beautiful French doors and open plan that allowed ample room for family and friends to come together or disappear into private sanctuaries. In 2018 they decided to begin the long-held dream to renovate their home with the idea of turning it into boutique holiday accommodation. In January 2020 after a lot of hard work and loving effort, The Bay Beachouse opened.

The Bay Beachouse is a modern mix modern of relaxed coastal luxe. When you enter the home you’re immediately appreciative of the impact the front deck and entry have, perfectly symmetrical with French doors flanking both sides and the Lucy Love Seat from Byron Bay Hanging Chairs hanging in the middle of the two entrance ways. This opens into a light and airy kitchen that is both functional and inviting. Jaime is not one for clutter and you see this in her carefully edited kitchen where everything feels just right, from the towering fiddle leaf fig, concrete bench tops to the raw wood shelving and sitting area which soften the industrial feel and give an organic cosiness to the space.

The front of the concrete bench has been tiled in a black and white geometrical patterned tile from Tile Cloud which adds extra interest and depth to the kitchen and ties in beautifully with the Dulux Black Caviar kitchen cabinet colour.

But the highlight is stepping through the French doors from the kitchen to the indoor/outdoor plantation style deck. The area is enormous and has space for both the BBQ area and dining, featuring Malawi chairs and copper pendant lighting, as well as abuilt-in bench seating for lounging. There is plenty of space for entertaining whatever the weather brings. Couple that with a sparkling pool, fire pit with more built-in bench seating and another outdoor dining area at the front of the property, it is the ideal home to escape and relax.

The beautiful French doors throughout most rooms in the home reflect a classic coastal style which Jaime quotes as one of her top things in the home, “one of our favourite features would have to be our French door hinges. These beautiful antique copper hinges are such a small part of our home however, we believe they have the greatest impact in each room. The size of the hinge and the way it opens up our doors, is a statement in itself.”

When asked for other favourites around the home she lists the kitchen’s concrete benchtops, the luxurious Coco Republic leather lounge,and the Bahama shutters which they designed and had installed in the outdoor living area. But the highlight is the indoor/outdoor bathhouse. The stone bath is huge, comfortably fits two adults and is the ultimate in indulgence and coastal luxury.

When Jaime is asked to describe her style, she says “Dave and I have often questioned or discussed what we would call our style. We feel our style has evolved from the love of high contrast, luxury and quintessential beach house, we believe that it could be best described as ‘Coastal Luxe’.”

Jaime draws inspiration from several sources but their number one holiday destination, Byron Bay, is where she gets most of her ideas. “Our favourite holiday destination is Byron Bay and our favourite places to stay are The Atlantic or The Bower. We have drawn a great deal of inspiration from Byron. Some of the homes and designers that have inspired us are Emma Lane and her home in the Byron Hinterland, The Bower, The Atlantic, Bisque House and Island Luxe”.

When asked what her top interior design tip is,she says “we live by the rule of three. An example of this would be our kitchen which started with a white pallet and then we added concrete benchtops and timber features to create a high contrast and organic

Jaime and Dave’s home is only a short walk to the sparkling blue waters of the Fraser Coast in the Hervey Bay suburb of Urangan. When asked, Jaime reels off a long list of things do in the area, “whale watching, world heritage listed Fraser Island day tours, 15 kilometres of esplanade to explore, Urangan Pier, beachfront cafes and restaurants, exploring the calm waters via sailing boat or jet ski and swimming all year round. We love the Frontroom and Bean Beat cafe and our favourite relaxed beachside bar and dining is Enzo’s on the Beach. Our favourite fine dining restaurant is the Vineyard which is a lazy 200 metres walk from home. But for us, our most beautiful memories and favourite part of our day is always the walk along Urangan Beach with our children by our side and our gorgeous golden retriever, Bryce.”

Since the seismic impact that has been COVID-19, Jaime and Dave made the decision to batten down the hatches and ride out the storm. They have moved the family back into Bay Beachouse during the school terms but still have the home available over the Queensland school holiday periods. As Jaime says “It was bittersweet for our family moving back in as we could finally enjoy what took two years to create. I told Dave daily how much I loved this kitchen, Dave loved that his garden was at his fingertips again. As the entire world reflected on what was important during the pandemic, we too pondered. As a family we decided to live in our home during our children’s school term.”

When asked what makes an amazing holiday retreat or home Jaime replies, “a place you can escape from work or the stresses of life and truly disconnect in order to focus on your own wellbeing in a relaxed and comfortable environment.”

And with the world in the middle of a pandemic and so much uncertainty The Bay Beachouse sounds like the perfect remedy.

The Bay Beachouse is available for bookings during Queensland school holiday periods via Airbnb and Instagram @bay_beachouse.