How on earth could I have a new website and blog without showcasing some of the favourite country home tours I have featured online over the years? Here is just a sample of some special and diverse home stories I have done in recent times. Of course my printed magazines – Australian Country Collections & Rick Rutherford’s County – featured more than 300 other profiles over the years, tracing the evolution of country style and how ‘real people’ design and decorate the place in which they live, generously sharing inspirations and ideas with others. If you would like to be included here and share your love of home with viewers across the world, I’d love to hear from you … just drop me a line. rickrutherford@iprimus.com.au
The lesson I have thoroughly learnt, and wish to pass on to others, is to know the enduring happiness that the love of a garden gives. (Gertrude Jekyll 1843 – 1932) “But, why on earth would you want to move?” It was a question that Avis and Bill McLeary were asked time and again when they announced they were selling their gorgeous heritage cottage in the middle of the NSW Blue Mountains and moving … … Read more
In reality, serendipity accounts for one percent of the blessings we receive in life, work and love. The other 99 percent is due to our efforts. (Peter McWilliams 1950 – 2000) By her own admission, Kerri Cook had an inside advantage! Being in the business of managing properties, she has the privilege of seeing a host of houses every day. And yet, despite the huge array of homes she views, when a particular cottage came … Read more
The world makes up for all its follies and injustices by being damnably sentimental. (Thomas Huxley 1825 – 1895) From the country to the town. From the family homestead on 11,000 acres to a Californian bungalow on a domestic block. Such has been the passage, in recent times, of Victorian couple Billy and Kelly Mott. Together with sons Jack and Thomas, the Motts were faced with a life-changing decision just over a year ago … … Read more
There’s a charm that is embodied In everything that’s true… That’s simple and wholesome That’s positively primitive, through and through (Elsie Whitely 1825 – 1899) One look at the interior of any room tells the tale. While some love a cottagey English country look and others are into a more rustic and rugged interpretation, some dote on a retro country style and still others like things elegant and classically appointed. According to Deb and Robert … Read more
We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. (Thornton Wilder 1897 – 1975) How long is a piece of string? The answer is as open-ended and potentially contentious as the questions ‘when is a house finished?’ and ‘when is a collection complete?’ For Victorian couple Jane MacDonald and Steve Moore, the answer to the two latter questions is in the stars! The country-loving, home-building, … Read more
It is up to us to live up to the legacy that was left for us, and to leave a legacy that is worthy of our children and of future generations. (Christine Gregoire 1947 – ) There is something very special about preserving the past in the here and now … working to ensure that the vision and dreams of others who have gone before us are honoured in the present. It’s a responsibility that … Read more