A Former Log Cabin Turned Luxury Retreat On The Fleurieu Peninsula

Joe Briello and Jo Lenart have worked throughout many inventive industries ahead of not too long ago turning to their genuine passion—land conservation and travel—in the form of lodging business enterprise, Rtreet.

Their very first of quite a few projects to come is Timba, situated on 100 acres in McLaren Vale, on South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula (about 40 minutes from Adelaide). Joe and Jo selected the website for its current all-natural properties and nearby sights, which they felt weren’t capitalised in the area’s existing lodging choices. 

Prior to Timba, the property showcased a log cabin that had been ‘let go’ over time, and cleared pastures formerly running as a cattle farm. Joe and Jo’s intent was to substantially extend the home and regenerate the surrounding landscape. 

The venture started with the present house staying largely gutted, with the exception of restored original attributes which includes the timber wall that wraps close to the kitchen area, timber windows, timber roof, and slate floors. 

The extension was developed to match the grandeur of the normal surroundings without the need of shedding the existing cabin’s character, or overpowering the landscape. ‘We required the home to be an unobtrusive insert into the South Australian landscape, so that when it is found from throughout the northern paddocks it appears to be like as however it is merely developing out of the trees,’ suggests Joe. 

Ethically-sourced cypress pine cladding achieves this effect, with totally repurposed timbers (together with jarrah, eucalypt, and Oregon) within just that instil an inherently rustic really feel. ‘A key for us was to make this location really feel warm and inviting—it is a farm in the McLaren Vale soon after all,’ states Joe. ‘We didn’t want to bring as well a lot town slickness below and shed sight of what it definitely is.’

Other additions include an up-to-date kitchen area and new bogs, both equally of which highlight recycled resources such as tapware created employing salvaged copper from the unique structure, and an antique dough bowl from Japanese Europe utilized as the rest room basin. 

The principal household now incorporates 3 king-sized bedrooms, with the addition of the new ‘studio room’ up coming door with its very own bathroom and en suite.

Joe and Jo had been individually accountable for all the design and build interior operates on Timba—from the carpentry, to plumbing, demolition, masonry, painting and building—which were being concluded when living on site. 

Regenerating the encompassing landscape with gardens has been a collaborative energy with landscape designers McMillan & Drew, together with the new spa and pool developed by Outside Developments. A new staircase primary down from the home potential customers to this out of doors region, which was formerly an unused paddock, producing yet another area to capture and enjoy the landscape. 

Substantial land revegetation and conservation efforts have been undertaken on the land to restore its previously cleared pastures. ‘We’ve planted hundreds and 1000’s of indigenous and endemic trees and species, operating with trees for everyday living to restore this formerly cleared pasture and regenerate land for our indigenous pals, claims Joe. ‘Koalas, echidnas, roos, wombats, possums are considerable on the house.’

Friends at Timba can hope to experience immersed in the ecosystem as they unwind in luxurious interiors framing gorgeous sights and textures. ‘It’s a very sensory-significant location,’ claims Joe. ‘The scent of the cladding is so beautiful, listening to it move in the wind, or as the rain falls on the tin roof. It’s magic!

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