128 JUST LIKE HEAVEN – A Grand Design Church House

Just Like Heaven

A GRAND DESIGN CHURCH HOUSE WORDS & IMAGES BY DANIELLE RALPH

Allegria, meaning “Joy of Spirit” in Italian, is the emblem to the most heavenly 20-acre property in Fish Creek. Having ascended the steep driveway, surrounded by the lushiest of rolling green hills, The Church House enters view. Perched at the pinnacle, this now boutique gourmet retreat is a work of art. Gracefully, the building’s foundations were restored with love.

Sidney, the well-groomed standard poodle, appears eagerly bouncing to meet his newest guest. Owner Peter Riedel opens the reinstated front door of the original St Georges Anglican Church, built in 1876, and continues the friendly reception. His partner Mary is just inside, where her passion for unique, rustic interiors is showcased.

“I’ve always loved old things and there was such romance in restoring a church, “Mary begins. “I had a vision of what I wanted. We’ve always lived in open plan spaces. It all evolved quite easily.”

What started as remnants of a church that needed a saviour morphed into the most divine home that was featured on the first series of Grand Designs Australia back in 2010. “The shape at the top of the front windows is the original shape from the old church, but we elongated them. The roofing on the veranda is all the internal boards of the church. It was all timber…and the colours reflect the era,” Mary explains.

Being featured on the show gave the pair a deadline for finishing their project. “Mary was an avid watcher of the English version of the show. They had a prefab house called a Huf Haus from Germany on the show, which was assembled in 7 days in the United Kingdom. Mary wanted one. She likes things instantly, that’s her nature,” Peter comments and they both laugh. Mary reached out to Grand Designs for a contact for the Huf Haus and ended up being on the program’s radar for what she might do next. What she did so, was pivot from Huf Haus to an Art Deco home to eventually a remodelled Church.

Born in Sicily, Mary incorporated her Italian roots to make The Church House the unique masterpiece it is today. “As soon as we started to map it up, I knew I wanted to have a little bit of old Venice here,” she says. You can see that from the dining room chandelier to the tapestries, the unfilled travertine floors and the intricately carved mirror in the appropriately named Venetian Suite.

The grand Chinoiserie Suite, located on the mezzanine floor, features bold and hand-painted gold wallpaper and was originally Peter and Mary’s bedroom. With their adult children now scattered across Perth, Darwin, Brisbane and Singapore, Peter and Mary decided to retreat in one of the rooms they call The Study to allow guests the option of the master experience. Peter notes, The Study can also facilitate wheelchair access.

The decision to open up their house to guests was to make it feel like a home, filled with joyous connections, once again. “We had a lovely property and no one to enjoy it with,” Mary reflects. “We both like cooking. We both like people and we were used to having people around. So, it just made sense.”

They spent 3 years modifying the house, including adding a sitting area which extends to a private patio from the Turquoise Suite, where I spent the evening. The screen used as a bedhead is a French re-production of a full-size drawing on vellum by Dutch painter Albert Eckhout in 1664. The hot tub is conveniently located just outside the double French doors of this suite.

Peter is also European, born in Austria. The couple like to spend their down time back in Europe, which of course is on hold at present. Both Peter and Mary moved to Australia at the age of five and largely attribute their hospitable nature to the way they grew up and then chose to repeat in their adult years. “My father grew vegetables. We would always go to the garden to see what could be picked to be cooked that evening,” Mary shares.

“I can’t follow a recipe to save myself! I can’t produce the same thing twice as I cook intuitively. Whereas Peter can repeat what he cooked 20 years ago, and it will be identical,” she says and they both chuckle.

“When we lived in the eastern suburbs of Greater Melbourne, we did a fair bit of dinner partying, “ Peter recalls. “Any new restaurant that would open, we would be there. So, food has always been central to our lives,” Mary adds.

Just like in their relationship, Peter and Mary complement each other in the kitchen. Peter follows his routine and takes on the pre-cooking, then Mary with her attention to visual appeal, finalises most dishes before service. They both find cooking relaxing and hosting a natural undertaking. “Our guests are like our friends that we are having over for the evening. The experience is based on what we enjoy,” says Mary. In the evening, canapes are followed by home-cooked courses and accompanied wines. My experience consisted of seafood sausage on a bed of salad from the garden, followed by tender and well-seasoned lamb and vegetables before a delicious, poached pear with vanilla bean ice-cream for dessert.

Peter’s freshly made croissants, homemade bread, poached seasonal fruits and freshly squeezed orange juice were the morning heroes. The all-inclusive and memorable stay at The Church House is testament to the talents and characters of Peter and Mary.

And of course, not to forget their side-kick Sidney. They are set up to have friends come around for as long as they wish.

Retirement is also sure to be beautiful. “I pinch myself every day when I look out the windows. It’s not a view you are bored with. It’s that magical outlook and those red mornings with streaks of pink that go for miles. I just love it,” says Mary. She continues: “The local Fish Creek community never made us feel like outsiders at all. We were adsorbed immediately. So, we’ve really got it all being here.”

A GRAND DESIGN CHURCH HOUSE