Inside the home of one of Australia’s leading interior designers Love It or List It Australia’s Neale Whitaker

Neale Whitaker has made a big name for himself as one of Australia’s leading home stylists, but what is he hiding in his own pad?

He’s known as the nice guy of lifestyle TV and when you meet him it’s easy to see why.

Neale Whitaker is charming, friendly, sweet-natured and impossibly polite.

He’s also hilarious.

The one-time magazine editor-in-chief (he oversaw industry bibles Belle and Vogue Living for many years) speaks like an English gentleman but underneath those polished vowels lies a distinctly droll sense of humour. That may come as a surprise but his burning passion for interiors and interior design will not.

The talented Mr Whitaker.

Neale, quite simply, lives and breathes the stuff.

His recent homewares launch Neale Whitaker X MyHouse is the latest home-related project that has captured his heart and in a very big way. And there’s several reasons why. Firstly, Neale has always wanted to launch a homewares range.

Secondly, he has always wanted to see a luxury range made accessible to all. And he believes his range is doing exactly that.

“I have no interest in bringing out an expensive designer range,” he explains.

“I wanted to create something accessible. I wanted pieces that were timeless … not high fashion or on trend. I hate those things.

“I wanted to create a range that was classic in feel and would work in all homes, with all styles and I think I have.”

Neale Whitaker at his coastal home.

And its beachy feel.

AT HOME WITH LOVE IT OR LIST IT AUSTRALIA’S NEALE WHITAKER

Who: Co-host of Foxtel’s Love It or List It and the Ten Network’s The Block, creator of My House homeware range and interiors specialist Neale Whitaker.

Where: Revamped country cottage in Bundewallah on the New South Wales south coast. Favourite thing: My partner David. How I could choose anything over him? And our dogs, of course.

Inspiration: Classic with a touch of quirky.

Home is: Wherever David and the dogs are.

NEALE WHITAKER’S FAVOURITE THINGS

Palm tree photograph

Palm tree vibes on a wet day.

I took this picture through the window of the Stokehouse Restaurant in St Kilda on a very wet, wintry Sunday. We had just finished filming The Block and were celebrating.

Bed linen

Nature’s influence.

All of the pieces in my home range with My House are influenced by nature — the colours, the textures and it’s designed so that all of the pieces work together.

Smokey glass vases

Smokey and green.

The Neale Whitaker Hemisphere vases come in two sizes. They’re made of premium quality glass with a grey ombre tint to add dimension. I love fresh flowers and greenery in a home and these are perfect for that.

Aboriginal and modern art

Simplistic but strong.

The paintings on the left are by Robert Doble. He’s a Melbourne-based artist who is a very good friend of ours. I just love everything he does and especially these two paintings. They’re very simplistic, but strong. The other is by an Indigenous artist who only paints in white. I bought it in Alice Springs.

Rattan lightshades

Lightkeepers.

These are from Koskela in Sydney. They were David’s choice. I wanted to go more over-sized and industrial in feel. I wasn’t sure about them but once they were in I loved the way looked.

Balinese boy statue

Not such a rip off.

I bought this statue in when back in 1999. I was with a friend and we found him in an antique market. I paid $15. He was adamant it was a rip off. I fell in love with him though and I still love him. I love the serene expression on his face.

Moroccan rug

From before Covid.

David and I bought this rug in Morocco on our last trip there in 2019. Right before the world shut down. It’s a traditional Berber rug with a riot of primary colour.

Designer chair

S chair – not for sitting.

This Tom Dixon S Chair is an absolute favourite of ours. He designed it back in the ’80s and if you view it from the side it does look like an S. It’s a very feminine shape, a beautiful piece of sculpture really … nobody ever sits on it.

Originally published as Inside the home of one of Australia’s leading interior designers Love It or List It Australia’s Neale Whitaker