Home is where the history is: WA property gets a makeover
Cranmore Park, near Moora in Western Australia, is steeped in tradition. For 105 years — and counting — the Lefroy family have called the property home. The memory of the past inhabitants is written into the floors, the walls, and in the red earth of the 6000-hectare merino stud property.
The current inhabitants, Kristin Lefroy, his wife Tracy, and their children Henry, six, Oliver, four, and little Eve, one, have put their own stamp on the historic property. While Kristin has lived on the property his whole life, Tracy moved here in 2005 after the pair were married. When Kristin’s parents, Anna and Bruce, decided to pack up and move to their farm in Bindoon, WA, Tracy took the opportunity to make more of a mark on her new home. For her, the project was a labour of love. “I love the thought that we’re bringing up our children where their father, grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great uncle lived.”
The oldest section of the the house, built by Edward Henry Bruce Lefroy, dates back to 1909. Two major additions to the house have turned it into today’s five-bedroom, three-bathroom main house.
A polished wooden dining table is an inviting antique addition to the home. “We kept it very simple and let the stone walls, reclaimed timber and building’s history be the hero,” says Tracy.
Cushions from Pony Rider and Emma Grace Hawtrey grace the bed in the home’s main bedroom. “I’d like to think that our home reflects the energetic, youthful family that lives here,” says Tracy.
In the bathroom, a sleek black sink sits on a timber bench. The addition of contemporary wooden furniture lightens the space and reflects the young family’s energy.
In Oliver’s room, a zebra painting by Melbourne’s Jesse Breakwell hangs above a bed from NSW’s Incy Interiors. Tracy says she purchases children’s linen from Lazy Bones Australia because “they [have] fun styles and yet [they’re] easy to maintain.”
Near the entrance sits a tin sign rescued from the shearing shed and a bowl by local artist Natalie Tonkin.
Henry’s craft zone sits inside the homestead’s enclosed verandah. “The kids love to run races along the floor, and its big enough that a small motorbike can be ridden around it,” says Tracy. “We found that out the hard way!”
Original slate tiles and heirloom pieces make the home’s entry area warm and inviting, while also looking modern and fresh. Worn timber pieces, lanterns and travelling trunks stamped with the initials of the family’s ancestors dot the homestead.
A white IKEA couch is surrounded by soft wooden fixtures. Cushions by Pony Rider and Lazy Bones add splashes of muted colour to the room.
Henry and Kristin out with their Kelpie, Yandy. At 4pm each day, Henry and his siblings can be seen zipping in and out of doors, with sheepdogs Yandy and Rosie hot on their heels.
A royal-blue heirloom armchair is a bright addition to the living room’s neutral palette. The armchair is draped with a scarf from Once Was Lost.
Tracy is an advocate for homegrown produce. Her focus is on her orchard and vegetable beds where she hopes to provide an abundance of fruit and vegetables for her family.
The shearing shed, which dates back to 1911, is a reminder of the homestead’s heritage. One of the home’s outbuildings is now used as Tracy’s office. She runs Cranmore Home, an online store dedicated to homewares, textiles, furniture and art from Australian designers. The venture was born out of her frustration that she couldn’t find the right items to decorate her home with. “I stopped searching shops and began looking for makers whose design ethos resonated with my own,” she says.
Tracy with a bale weighing machine, one of many such artefacts that can be found around the homestead. Both Tracy and Kristin agree that taking their time with redecorating the property has truly paid off. “The memories, the conversations, the layers, can only be created authentically over time,” she says. And time, we can agree, is something this family has plenty of.
