Nectaar interior designer Emily Jury has recently designed Harcourt, a Portuguese-inspired farmhouse with calmness and harmony at the forefront.

Nectaar is a Melbourne-based interior design practice established in 2018 by Bec Dourous. The practice is a self-proclaimed ‘family-orientated team’ with a focus on producing high-end design works in residential, retail and commercial spheres which reflect deep consideration for how people ‘live, breathe and grow in a space’.

Harcourt, completed in late 2022, is nestled on an 18–acre farm – a two-hour drive northwest of Melbourne. Jury’s partner Mark is the property manager and also oversees farm activity. Jury was influenced by Nectaar’s penchant for approaching design from a sympathetic and detail-oriented perspective, alongside considering the location and context of the natural environment.

“Our approach was always ensuring the structure does not compete with the surrounding views,” says Jury. 

She explains that this approach resulted in the couple’s preference for simple structures and honest use of natural materials and tones which complement the landscape and contribute to the house’s “tranquil presence”.

The couple has created a home that exists in complete harmony and peace with the surrounding natural environment. 

For the farmhouse’s pavilion-style form, Jury was inspired by the rectangular beachside villas familiar to the Portuguese coast which rely on simple volumes and linear geometrics. She also sought for the rough rendered finishes to echo those naturally weathered by its conditions. 

Her embrace of earthy, raw materials due to the air of simplicity and tactility they provide is evident inside the house through the pink-tinge brick, muted palette tones and facade rendering.

The warmth of these grey and soft pink palettes imbue the farmhouse with a softness that further speaks to the comfortable and relaxing environment desired in her home.

The couple added further meaning to the minimalistic tones of the house by pairing these simple structures alongside a generous use of marble stones, tiles, grains and plaster.

“We created subtle juxtapositions that entice you to reach out and feel,” says Jury. 

Overall, Harcourt exemplifies Nectaar’s company goal to create beautifully functional homes anchored in skilled craftsmanship and sincere respect towards a property’s surrounding environment. 

Photography by Dylan James.

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