It feels as if you’re walking into a cave,” says Samantha McKenzie, director of Acustico Lighting and the owner of this home in Melbourne’s Brighton. For Samantha, an interior designer by trade, creating a home that was sturdy and sensorial was a top priority. “I wanted it to feel like walking into a big, warm hug with heavy drapes and loop-pile wool carpets. It needed to feel solid, all-encompassing and cosy.”
It was during a 10-month sabbatical in 2013 with her family in the town of Cernobbio in Lake Como, Italy, that Samantha says sowed the