Interior Design Choices: What I Love in Our Farmhouse

We’ve lived at the farm for almost four years. In that time we’ve renovated most of the house. Over time, tastes and trends change so there are things about our house I sort of wish I’d never done. But decor is meant to change and, like anyone who loves to decorate, I can be easily swayed by trends. (Though I wish I wasn’t.) That said, I love our home and there are so many interior design choices I made that bring me joy every day. Elements that are classic and I hope will still be part of our home when we are gone.

In this post, I want to share the design choices I made I love and why they are my favourites.

Design Choices #1: Wrap Around Verandah

When we arrived at the farm four years ago, the verandah covered the north and east sides of the house. From details we saw under the eaves we thought the verandah had been on the south side too and had been removed during one of the house ‘updates’ over the years. (Don’t get me started)In my mind, I could see straight away that continuing the verandah right around the house would give the house that quintessential Australian farmhouse look. I wanted to rebuild it to provide a vista on entry to our home. Given our budget and the amount of work to be done to the house we knew it might not happen. But I’m so glad it did!

The view as you walk up the front path now is one of a real farmhouse. The verandah keeps the weather out and we make use of it all year round. Choosing the traditional crossbars that we see on houses around our area gives it a feel of timelessness, as if it’s always been there. Rebuilding the old verandah is one interior design choice I would not change. Ever.

Painting the Floors White

This was a big one and not an easy decision. Most of the floors in the farmhouse are original timber and still had the dark stain from Victorian times. I originally kept this and even recoated the floors in black Japan. But the floors always looked dark and dirty. So a year ago, I painted them white. It was the best move ever! Now they look clean, even if I spill my coffee! The fluff and dust of the old house does not show and everything seems lighter. Painted floors is one of the interior design choices I’m definitely sticking with. Why? They go with any country vintage style of decorating, they are easy to maintain (despite being white) and can be recoated when they start to look shabby.

Design Choices #3: Stripping the Paint off the Front Door

The third of the design choices I still love was taking the paint off our front door. This was the first thing I tackled after we moved in. It took me over a week and at times I was tempted to just slap a fresh coat over the top as there were so many layers. But now the door is revealed and protected with a few coats of matt varnish it is such a statement. Every detail in the timberwork is highlighted and the original door lock looks impressive. I would never paint over this again.

Choosing Dark Kitchen Cabinets

When we installed our kitchen ‘farmhouse’ decor was very much the rage. White cabinetry was everywhere on Instagram. I’ve lived with white kitchens before and have found them boring, so I chose a charcoal grey that’s so dark it’s almost black.

It was another contentious decision I agonised over. The builder thought I was nuts when I gave him my colour choice but the kitchen-dining is a huge room filled with light all day. It can take dark cabinetry. His main objection was it would be hard to keep clean but, honestly? I find white cabinets show every tiny splash. What’s the difference? Our dark cabinets ground the large space. They act as a neutral backdrop. And because they are in a classic profile we could easily have them painted in the future.

Installing Subway Tiles

Subway tiles will always be a classic choice. They are perfect in any style of home. Our subway tiles are a longer version of the traditional and have dark grout which is an absolute blessing!

We installed our ensuite almost three years ago and I still love all the tile choices in this room. Why? The floor tiles are patterned so they don’t show dirt. They give a nod to the heritage of our home. They have a number of colors in them so I can mix and match towels or bed linen.

The tiles and mirror are the hero of our otherwise simple ensuite. If we had installed boring grey tiles like everyone has the room would not have had the impact that it does. Even the tiler told us he enjoyed laying them because it was a nice change from the boring every day tile you see on home renovation shows.

Maybe in ten years we might take up the patterned tiles and revamp the room but there will never be a need to redo the wall tile. White classic subway never goes out of style.