17th May 2021 / Prue Fletcher: At Home | with Craig & Bec Donald

AT HOME WITH CRAIG & BEC DONALD

When commercial and residential builder Craig Donald and his wife Bec looked to sell their Ferny Creek residence, they looked no further than Fletchers.

Having sold many of their developments through Fletchers Manningham Director, Jason Salan, Craig and Bec have become part of the extended Fletchers family as loyal, long-time clients. With Fletchers Yarra Ranges Director, Glenn Gardiner, currently managing the sale of their private residence, 5 Seabreeze Avenue, Craig and Bec were kind enough to put into words what it was that made them fall in love with this beautiful part of the world.

Built around and to the south of Dunns Hill, Ferny Creek is a quaint eastern suburb in the Dandenong Ranges. Located 33 kilometres away from the CBD, Ferny Creek is surrounded by conservation zones and national parks, allowing its residents to experience the country lifestyle while living only a short drive away from the city.

"The community is tight knit and resilient" comments Bec,"everything you want when it comes to being part of a small town." With strong bones comes a rustic beauty, being 500m above sea level means small amounts of snow are not uncommon in the coldest parts of winter. How idyllic!

A town known for its cottage style homes, many of which were built in the early 1900's by prominent Melbournians, have either been beautifully maintained or are undergoing transformation – a huge lift for values in the area. Befitting its dress circle location, 5 Seabreeze Avenue comes with a bounty of bonus features set within lush landscaped gardens, those of which tourists travel to Ferny Creek just to pay witness to it's beautiful rainforest setting.

What made your heart settle in Ferny Creek?

Craig and I chose Ferny Creek as it really gave us the best of both worlds. It has all the charm associated with Hills living, big blocks, privacy, and beauty but is also only a short easy commute back to the suburbs and a fairly direct drive into Melbourne. This was really important to us both working in town; especially for Craig working all over.

What has been your favourite thing about living in the local Yarra Ranges community?

We love living in the Yarra Ranges community. When our three children were growing up they were involved in sport and there is something very special about local footy, and sporting clubs in this area. There is always an opportunity for involvement at this level. As the family has gotten older, we have enjoyed the many walks, parks and cafes that the hills have to offer and breakfast out on a Sunday morning has become a favourite new tradition.

With Craig being a builder, what was your inspiration behind this build?

Our inspiration when creating this home was to make use of the existing structure as much as possible; we wanted to keep the bones of the home as it had been a favourite getaway weekender for the original owners. We wanted a space for our three children to be able to grow up and to bring their friends. We also designed a space for our interstate and international family visitors to be able to relax away from us when staying for extended periods of time. With this in mind, we designed large bedrooms and family spaces.

What's one of your favourite features in your home?

We believe we have achieved a home that is both family and guest friendly with room for multiple events and spaces to work together or separately when entertaining. Craig's favourite space is the Watering Hole bar which has a beautiful locally sourced sassafras timber bench top and is well stocked, whilst my favourite space is the sitting area in our bedroom with the gas log fire, perfect for a quiet reading when the mood takes me.

In post Pandemic life, we are seeing more and more families in search of the perfect 'lifestyle property'. Seabreeze seems to tick a lot of these boxes? Tell us a little bit more about it.

During the pandemic and lockdown we reaped the benefit of the design of the home, it allows everyone the ability to be able to work and relax in their own space. Outside we have a number of spaces that lend themselves to gatherings or quiet contemplating; national parks on our doorstep add to the options for outside relaxation.

Certainly the home is geared to a "work life" and lifestyle balance with the added benefit of the swim spa and outside entertaining hub.

In your opinion, what makes a home 'home'?

Our greatest drive with the house when designing and building was to make it a home for our family and homely for our guests. We wanted to be able to entertain but wanted the spaces to be warm, cosy and inviting for all. The children have loved the sanctuary of their rooms and the space afforded to them, especially when they were teenagers and young adults.

People come to Ferny Creek to experience the beautiful flora, fauna and rainforests. Did this influence your landscape design?

Outside, we wanted to make the most of the flat block and over the years, the back area has been home to trampolines and swing sets with the fire pit and hot house more reflective of our current life style. Planting of tulips, ranunculus and daffodils in the front garden that flower in spring are heart-warming along with the Japanese maples and camellias adding interest and colour across the seasons. The focus has always been on areas that promote outside activity and gardening in the hills is a joy as everything grows so well in this environment.

Fast Five

Best Coffee: That's a tough one with so many wonderful cafés on our doorstep – but if I do have to pick one – Ripe Cafe in Sassafras – just wonderful after a short walk

Go-to for dinner: Again so many choices in the Dandenong's – we love the quaintness of Micawber Tavern in Belgrave but there are so many places to choose from we are spoilt for choice.

Activity to do with the kids: when they were younger they enjoyed the Trees Adventure in Belgrave but now we all enjoy a walk in any of the parks but especially the Alfred Nichols garden

Favourite track to walk: Lyrebird track near the 1000 steps – only a few hundred metres from our front door – especially in the evening on a Spring or Autumn day.

Local sporting team to follow: We are a basketball family so enjoy watching the local Sherbrooke Suns play, but the Olinda Ferny Creek football club are our local team and we do like to catch a number of games during the season at the local ground in Olinda – especially as it is a nice stroll from the shops and cafes in this beautiful area.

5 Seabreeze Avenue is open for inspection the weekend. 2-2.30pm on Saturday and 12-12.30pm on Sunday or contact Glenn Gardiner on 0418 376 144 to make a time to view.