Landmark Chelmer Queenslander Circa 1905

My husband and I have started watching “Blacklist” on Netflix.  I get it, we are well and truly behind the times!  Sometimes when I’m writing these blog posts, I feel a little like Raymond Reddington and how he always talks about an event in the past.  I do that most times when I’m writing about a Queenslander that I’ve discovered.  And today is no different!  This circa 1905 Queenslander is located in Chelmer.  To me, Chelmer, along with Sherwood and Graceville are a bloc of super high end suburbs.  A colleague of mine lived there some 15 years ago and had purchased their Queenslander (before the boom!) as a renovator.  They sold it a few years later, in the same condition as they bought it, for a monster profit.  I didn’t understand the appeal of the area at the time and it wasn’t until I realestalked that I realised how many traditional, grand old Queenslanders were within this little precinct.

Today’s Queenslander in Chelmer is one of the grand Queenslanders of yesteryear.  Her name is Arcadia and she is simply divine.

She is full of character with soaring 14 ft ceilings, timber floorboards, VJ walls and ceilings, picture rails, decorative timber work, hallway arch, ornate fireplace and sash windows.  Did I mention a tennis court and a pool?

 

Okay, so I adore the facade.  The staired entry with the gabled portico is just so sweet and the house is all on one level so the facade looks like a traditional Queenslander as it has not been built under.  The only blight on this view is the massive concrete slab and carport.  It completely ruins the view.  I would rip up the concrete that isn’t under the carport and replace it with grass.  Yes, this may be a problem if you have more than two cars but it would just looks so much better.  I would also screen off (using lattice, my favourite) the side of the carport that faces the house.  And put a beautiful garden bed against it so that the house looks onto something pretty.

Everything changes once you step inside.  Seriously these walls are to die for.  It is very white but I think that it looks lovely with the lighter floorboards which are such a warm colour.  Now both the walls and ceiling are VJs.  Some people prefer VJ walls with a plaster ceiling, some don’t.  I like the VJ walls because it brings back the memories of our little rental in Ashgrove.  Now to the left in the next photo is the formal lounge and dining rooms.  The door at the end of the hallway actually leads to the rear of the house.  It makes me wonder if the house entry was changed to the other end of the house, because (as you will see in floor plan below), the entry opens straight into the lounge / kitchen / dining which is very un-Queenslander like.

So, then as the front of the house is the open living, dining and kitchen area and it is magnificent.  The fanlight windows that open up to the outside and in this room, the walls have been painted grey with white highlights.  If you’ve been reading this blog, you’ll know that grey or beige are my two favourite colours for a Queenslander.  I’m still a little confused by the layout to be honest.

Here is the formal living / dining area.  It is a large, stunning room that opens up onto the verandah.  Imagine nights by the fireplace with the family gathered around playing board games and drinking hot cocoa.  That’s a perfect evening in for me.

I’ve only included a photo of one bedroom in this post – simply because I wanted you to get an idea of the scale of the 14 ft ceilings and how magnificent they are.  It looks like the walls in the main sections of the house have ceiling rails whereas these are not present in the bedrooms (or at least the room below).  While sparsely furnished, isn’t this room fabulous?!

Outside the kitchen, through the swing doors is the front deck which is a great spot for entertaining.

Here’s a close up of the kitchen and it is all my kitchen dreams coming true at once.  It is modern with white cabinets and the VJ walls are proudly on show.  But for me, it is those grey splashback tiles that are making me giddy!

Finally, the floor plan.  It is a five bedroom house, although the third bedroom is a little small.

Details

This house in Chelmer is for sale and will be auctioned this weekend.  It sits on 2700 square meters .  The agent is  Jason Adcock of Adcock Prestige – Brisbane.  The real estate link is here.