Monday 10 January 2011

Queenslander house renovation blogs

Two months before we first moved into the Sow's Ear in May 2009, I scoured the internet for websites about Queenslander house renovations.

Worker's Cottage in Stones Corner, Queensland

I needed some local inspiration and somehow stumbled into the world of Blogs.

The House that A-M built was one of the first blogs I found. It was a real eye opener in the world of building a new "traditional" home in the suburbs of Brisbane.

I also stumbled upon Toxteth about a Queenslander house renovation in Ipswich and of course, Renovate Australia about renovating a Queenslander in Townsville. There was also Restoring the Old Girl blog which was about to undertake a major renovation in Red Hill.

Old Queenslander in Coorparoo
Image courtesy of State Library Queensland

Apart from those blogs, there were surprisingly very few blogs dedicated to Queenslander house renovations. I thought it would be a good idea to document our experiences, despite our renovations being not so major and in a decorating style (mid century) that is not normally associated with Queenslanders.(Nothing wrong with thinking outside the square, I say!)

I get quite a few emails from people who are working on their Queenslander house. They give me such lovely feedback and some have even started blogging about their renovations too. It is really quite gratifying.

Anyway, there are a lot more blogs about Queenslander houses now. I thought it would be a great idea to have a separate blog list on Queenslander house renovations.

This is my list so far:
(If I have left anyone off, please let me know because I follow a lot of renovation blogs and sometimes I can't keep track!)

The little house that could - this is a great little blog about the renovation of a colonial Queenslander in the outer suburbs of Brisbane.
Renovate Australia - documents the renovations to a Queenslander in Townsville, North Queensland.
Restoring the Old Girl - this is the story of how one family bought the 100 year old house next door, which had been in the same family, contents and all.
The Five Year Project - two or so years are down on this Queenslander renovation.
The Clothesline Online - it documents the renovations to a Heritage listed Queenslander in Ipswich
Toxteth - renovation of a Queenslander in Ipswich
Nostalgia and Now - interiors, before and afters and renovations
White Floors - interiors inspiration and renovation of an inter-war Queenslander in Brisbane
Bungalow Bliss  - a very new blog about a Californian-style Bungalow renovation
Timber and Tin  - a very new blog about a Colonial Queenslander house relocation
Crazy House Capers  - these people are renovating two Queenslanders at the same time !!!
My Pink Door - not so much about renovating, but it has lovely images of the interiors of a Queenslander home.
Spots and Stripes - an inspiring blog from serial renovators. Their latest project will be a 1900s Queenslander.
A Cream Cottage - a new blog about first time home owners and their Queenslander house.

And Jo from Desire to Inspire is undertaking a renovation of an 1860s home in Ipswich check it out on her page:
Desire to Inspire: Jo's page

Anna Spiro from Absolutely Beautiful Things is also planning work on her 1880s Queenslander on Brisbane's Bayside, but you'll have to click the label tags on her sidebar to find information about her house.

Also, check out No Small Dreams website which is about a sustainable Queenslander house renovation in Brisbane.

And of course, there's us!!

So there you have it, Queenslander house junkies. It is by no means the definitive list, however it is a good start if you are looking for inspiration for your Queenslander  house renovation. Happy browsing!

25 comments:

  1. Just had a chance to catch up on your back posts Anita & what a treat I've had! Love seeing all the different architectural styles in your 'hood. Fabulous to see all the Qld. reno. blogs listed too. I somehow think the list would be considerably shorter for those of us brave (read as stupid!) enough to try & drag a '70's house into the 00's!
    Millie x

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  2. Oooh, some new reading material... thank you! Happy New Year too. :-)

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  3. This year we're renovating a Queenslander circa 1900. It will be our third renovation so far and I've now decided that I'm a serial renovator. Our second renovation has just been featured on the this month's Home Beautiful. More details on my blog. Amber PS. Your blog is very inspiring for our upcoming renovation!

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  4. Oh Lorna. I did too. You always forget the ones you read all the time!! Anyway, your're top of the list now. xx

    Amber, sorry I forgot to put you on too.
    This definitive list thing is obviously not my best work!

    Thanks Millie and Edwina for the nice comments. xx

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  5. Hi Anita - thanks so much for this list - will keep me busy while we are stuck inside with all this rain.
    We have just returned from a week in Sydney. While I was browsing the eclectic shops in Newtown I found myself thinking "Anita would love that!" - isn't that funny - don't know you from a bar of soap but am thinking about you when I am on hols!

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  6. Thanks kma. I reckon Newtown is my kind of town. I bet you saw some cool stuff then. xx

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  7. The list is getting bigger with some of my accidental omissions. I added A Cream Cottage to the list too. Check out the link above.

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  8. Wow thanks for the list...I have found some lovely new blogs...more hours wasted!!!

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  9. What a wrap-up, thank you so much. x

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  10. Fantastic Anita - thanks so much! I love looking at other Queenslander renovations and I don't have all of the ones you have listed so I can't wait to go and see what they are up to. ;-)

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  11. I can spend many a happy hour with all this info - thanks!

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  12. Oooooh new blogs! Fellow renovators! I wouldn't so much call mine a renovation more throwing money into the abyss. I think I actually bought an 1860 storage shed for all my "stuff". Speaking of stuff I want to organise a 'swich swap meet (Brisbanites can come too). Bloggers who want to meet up and maybe swap thrifted goodies or small pieces of furniture or books or magazines or cushions ... do you see where this is going? :)I have too much stuff and I want to get rid of some of it so I won't be swapping. I'll just be forcing it onto unsuspecting participants. Call it a free garage sale. You in?

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  13. Ha! You didn't even have to ask, Jo. Of course I'm in!! And throwing money into the abyss sums it up perfectly. I'd hate to tally up Jason's regular visits to Bunnings or that Brasso habit he has...

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  14. I used to just sniff Brasso, then I started drinking it. Now I just mainline :) The invitation to the 'swich swap goes out to everyone. I'll announce on the blog but first it has to stop raining. I'm drowning in rising damp!

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  15. Thanks for the list, I can't wait to start reading about how others solve their renovation dilemmas!

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  16. Good idea Anita! I think a lot of international readers are intrigued by the Queenslander, and enjoy reading about their perculiarities.

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  17. Great list Anita, I must check it out. Bit jealous reading the swap meet comments, obviously brissy is the place to be!!

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  18. Thanks for the list,hopefully some "expert" amateurs in that bunch.When I searched for inspiration(and commiseration)12 months ago all I found was ads for building products from businesses.Looking forward to more peeking!

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  19. Oh goody! I love to see personal home renos. Thanks for the list.

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  20. love the old house picture looks like the big ranch in the move AUSTRALIA

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  21. Thank you so much for a great list...for some reason I did not have you on my sidebar either so am going to fix that now and will go search out those lovely blogs. Mel xx

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  22. What a great list. Looking forward to checking it out as there are a few I've not heard of. Thanks! :)

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  23. thanks for the mention, i'm sadly very behind in my posting. hoping things kick off again soon :)

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  24. Thanks for this list!!!

    Sarah

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