A durable reno for a sporting family

Find out why one family was happy to forsake a plain patch of grass in the backyard to give their kids a basketball court.

It’s not often you get to see a basketball court set up in the backyard of a suburban family home, but Julia Williams and her husband Mark Bejatovic were adamant their new home would cater to their four sporting children. Jordan, 15, Luca, 13, Jake, 11, and Ruby, 10 all play in different basketball teams, but there is no home court advantage when playing against each other in the family’s backyard.

Julia and Mark went the extra mile and had a mini basketball court set up at home.

Julia says she was happy to forsake a plain patch of grass in the backyard to give the kids a court that is almost to the three-point line.

“It gets used every single day and the kids are very competitive with each other.”

The basketball court is just one defining attribute of the family home in Melbourne. When it came to renovating the interiors, Julia says she wanted a dainty Hamptons design aesthetic, but made tougher.

While Julia and Mark’s children are no longer toddlers, the couple wanted a home where their active children would not have to be too precious about how they lived.

“The kids are past that destructive age, so now we could buy new things that are a little bit nice in lighter colours instead of opting for black all the time,” says Julia. “But, we wanted something that not only looked good but that would wear well. There are four very sporty kids in the home.

The Home designed by Sophie Kost for the Melbourne family with four kids home had to be comfortable but hard wearing. Photos by Lisa Atkinson

“We are also homebodies and this is a very busy household. Everybody had to have their own comfortable space but durable areas where we could come together as a family.”

Julia enlisted the help of interior designer Sophie Kost, of My Beautiful Abode, to refine her Hamptons-inspired vision, but had a steady hand in directing some aspects of the renovation.

“The dining table was something that I thought a lot about,” says Julia.

“I wanted it to be big and bold. It’s something that gets a lot of use and it had to be hard-wearing. I also didn’t want to have to cover it up with a tablecloth and it had to flow within what was already in the house.”

The dining table, which comfortably seats the family of six, was custom-made with an easy-clean and hard-wearing Caesarstone top designed to match the kitchen bench.  When extended family visit, extra chairs are added, with 10 seats fitting easily around the standout piece of furniture.

The dining table mimics the design form of the kitchen.

Home designed by Sophie Kost for Melb family with four kids - home had to be comfortable but HARD WEARING, Photos by Lisa Atkinson

The couch in the downstairs living area was another item from Julia’s wish list. At about 10 metres wide and seven metres deep, it fits seven people comfortably.

“It’s a big space that needs something big. There is a spot on this couch for everyone. Not that we all generally sit here together, but it’s nice to know that we can.”

Sophie says it’s not just the couch that was improved to suit the family – “We took a classic design and made it into a monster” – but all the changes to some degree were made to make life easier.

The extra large family couch comfortably fits the whole family … and more.

“The rug downstairs is made of polypropylene to make it easier to clean and I heard that the children were not allowed to sit on the cushions upstairs, so I had them taken away. It’s about living comfortably … Julia wanted a Hamptons house that wouldn’t feel precious so there was no reason to have cushions in the house that wouldn’t be used,” she says.

Easy to wipe down materials and fabrics have been used throughout the home.

“We chose materials in the house that were either easy to wipe down or used FibreGuard upholstery fabrics that are stain resistant.” The easy care factor was also extended to indoor plants. There are pockets of green throughout the house that are low-to-no maintenance.

“We have done a practical combination of real plants and faux plants to make the spaces easier to maintain – some need water and the others clearly don’t. There’s greenery throughout the home without the pressure to keep them all alive.”