Maurice & King

Writer

Lucy Feagins

19th of January 2011

The Sydney apartment of Kate and Guillame – aka ‘Maurice & King‘

Dining room details – including some Xmas decos now a little out-of-date but so cute I had to include!

Oh Sydney. You are so pretty. So very shiny and summery. And whilst I am a Melbourne girl through and through… it’s beachside apartments like this which really get me pining over your beautiful sun and the sea and beachside lifestyle! Swooooon.

This gorgeous little apartment in Sydney’s Manly is home to Kate and Guillame – aka ‘Maurice & King‘. (I don’t know which is which I must admit!). Like our enigmatic guest blogger this week, little is known about the mysterious Maurice & King(!!), but we can tell you that Kate is a graphic designer, and has worked for magazines including Harper’s Bazaar, Grazia and Cosmopolitan, whilst Guillaume works in banking as a portfolio manager. The pair live here with their 9 month old son.

Kate and Guillame purchased their 2-bedroom beachside apartment 2 years ago. It was the location and floorplan which caught their attention initially – the apartment has a great layout and Kate says they loved it from the moment they walked in! After taking possession, Kate and Guillame set about gutting and renovating the entire space – new floors, new kitchen, new bathroom, ‘the works’ says Kate! It was a bit of a challenge finding decor / fittings that suited their mid-century, modernist aesthetic, whilst also being functional and child-friendly, she says. Although the apartment is modest in size, it was a priority to maximise storage space – and to squeeze a dining table into the main living area!

Kate and Guillame have filled their home with favourite finds – Kate says she loves the thrill of the chase when it comes to hunting down coveted furniture pieces, objects and artwork from markets, auctions and eBay. Many items have been sourced off the beaten track and lovingly restored – ‘nothing better than a home filled with good stories!’ says Kate! Having said that, the pair are ruthless when it comes to clutter or pieces that simply didn’t work here – ‘We have moved all the furniture at least 20 times and didn’t hesitate to sell pieces that didn’t fit’ says Kate.

AND BEFORE you can muster up any ‘why isn’t my apartment this cute / tidy / tranquil / well located?’ frustration, I should let you know that you can actually rent this apartment yourself very soon! Kate and Guillame are off to France mid-year, and their lovely little pad is available for holiday rental for around 6 weeks in April and May – please visit this little website for more info!

You also MUST visit Maurice & King’s excellent little blog. Super super cute and well worth a bookmark!

Thanks so much to Kate and Guillame for sharing their home with us… personally I would LOVE to shack up here for a mid-year Sydney escape…! If you’re keen, do drop Kate an email soon!

All credit for this fantabulous Sydney home tour goes to the amazing Jenny Butler – who, it transpires, is the Sherlock Holmes of cute Australian homes! She is coming up with some PEARLERS at the minute and in fact uncovered another doozy recently which will be up next week! Stay tuned!