Point Piper in Sydney\u2019s eastern suburbs is home to one of the best bathrooms in the world, according to the annual Dezeen awards, a global design accolade.<\/p>\n
Its dark, moody and luxurious interiors were partly inspired by Bram Stoker\u2019s Dracula.<\/p>\n
Jillian Dinkel, principal and creative director of her eponymous studio, said she was \u201chugely honoured to be recognised on an international stage\u201d for the transformation of Kilmory House in one of the city\u2019s most affluent areas.<\/p>\n
Dezeen, a trade design and architecture publication, awarded two Australian projects at its ceremony in London on 25 November: Jillian Dinkel for bathroom interior of the year and Melbourne\u2019s Studio Bright for house (urban) of the year.<\/p>\n
One of the bathrooms at Kilmory House, a heritage home in Sydney, designed by Jillian Dinkel. Photograph: Dave Wheeler\/The Guardian<\/p>\n
\u201cMy clients were really open to being quite adventurous in creating spaces that felt very dramatic,\u201d said Dinkel. Dracula \u201cwas the starting point for what ended up being our colour scheme for the entire home\u201d.<\/p>\n
Kilmory House is a transformation of the former stables of a historic estate built for surgeon Sir Alexander MacCormick in approximately 1913. Dinkel found photographs of MacCormick\u2019s original home featuring dark timber panelling, which also informed the design.<\/p>\n
Bram Stoker\u2019s novel Dracula was a reference for the interior design at Kilmory House. Photograph: Dave Wheeler\/The Guardian<\/p>\n
The three-bedroom property is a second home for its current owners, who commissioned Dinkel to create multiple spaces for entertaining guests \u2013 including a pilates studio, playroom and commercial-grade kitchen.<\/p>\n
Dezeen\u2019s judges commended the project for its craftsmanship and mix of materials in the upstairs bathroom, next to the in-home wellness centre. \u201cWe used stainless steel, marble and Venetian plaster on the wall, so lots of tactile materials intersect in that space,\u201d said Dinkel.<\/p>\n
Dinkel also designed a powder room with solid timber panelling, a marble and brass custom basin and hand-painted wallpaper. Plus a kids\u2019 bathroom with deep burgundy tones and pale blues.<\/p>\n
Kilmory House includes a playroom, pilates studio and wellness area. Photograph: Dave Wheeler\/The Guardian<\/p>\n
Dinkel worked as a fashion editor at Cond\u00e9 Nast in New York before opening her studio in Sydney in 2016, which specialises in heritage homes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are really trying to preserve as much of the original architecture as possible and we\u2019re trying to match that level of quality and craftsmanship which can feel like a lost art these days,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
In Melbourne, Melissa Bright, director of Studio Bright, said \u201cto be recognised against some of our heroes in the architectural industry across the world is amazing\u201d.<\/p>\n
Studio Bright\u2019s Hedge and Arbour House has won multiple awards this year. Photograph: Rory Gardiner\/Studio Bright<\/p>\n