Newstead: 1890s-era house transformed into country-style haven by antiques dealer and artist

An antiques dealer and artist have recorded the significant restoration of their nearly 130-year-old house on social media, where they also created a gorgeous garden haven. SEE INSIDE

Built in the 1890s, the house at 1-3 Clarke Lane, Newstead, sits on a green 5001sq m block.

Antiques dealer Janet Hotblack has a talent for seeing beyond a vintage piece of furniture’s damaged exterior to the beauty that lies beneath.

This skill proved handy when Hotblack and her artist husband Marcus first saw their future house at 1-3 Clarke Lane, in the former gold rush town of Newstead, near Castlemaine.

Hotblack said the circa-1890s home was a far cry from how it looks today but she could see its potential for transformation.

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“I think it had a renovation in the 1950s, if you could call it a renovation,” Hotblack said.

“There were some ‘50s and ‘70s elements in the house that had to be gotten rid of.”

After buying in 2014, the couple restored the abode, keeping original period features like timber floorboards, handcrafted glass windowpanes and fireplaces.

“It’s a lovely little house, it’s very light and has a very positive vibe,” Hotblack said.

She recalls discovering the tongue and groove walls after removing masonite material, hessian and Victorian-era wallpaper fragments atop them.

Tongue and groove refers to a method of fitting similar objects, often wood, for processes such as parquetry and panelling.

The home is within walking distance of Newstead Village, about a 15-minute drive to Castlemaine and about 30 minutes to Daylesford.

The owners, antiques dealer Janet Hotblack and husband Marcus, an artist, have filled the home with vintage items – many from France – and art.

A ver named Miss Moss, who specialised in large animals like horses and cows, lived at the house in the 1920s and 1930s.

A friend with a tractor was recruited to move the water tank that a previous owner had installed right outside a bedroom window.

Hotblack even visited the local historical society in the hopes of finding old photographs of the house, so she could replicate how its return veranda looked in the past.

Inside, the living area has a wood-burning stove and French doors opening to the veranda.

A country-style kitchen features a farmhouse sink, oak bench tops and an electric oven and stove, while the dining areas leads to an outdoor courtyard and barbecue space.

The timber tongue and groove walls were revealed after shiny masonite material, hessian and Victorian-era wallpaper fragments were removed.

The garden is a serene retreat populated by many kinds of birds.

Two of the three bedrooms have two have built-in wardrobes and one of the two bathrooms is equipped with vintage French fittings and a bath.

“Every room in the house had big, older windows and you see the garden, the garden comes into every room you go into,” Hotblack said.

Outdoors, Hotblack has created a garden with a landscape designer and couple of other gardeners initially lending a hand.

Hedges define individual “garden rooms” with fruit and olive trees, a raised vegetable garden and separate studio where Marcus paints.

An original fireplace in one of the three bedrooms.

One of the home’s owners, Janet Hotblack, completed an interior design course which she said taught her many practical tricks for restoring homes.

Hotblack said owls, cockatoos, kookaburras, rosellas and fairy wrens flock to the property.

“It’s such a beautiful, serene environment, we ourselves can’t believe how much the garden has grown,” she said.

“If you like nature and birdlife, it’s really a bit of a haven.”

Hotblack, who runs Vintage_Etc retail space within Olinda’s Butlers Vintage Depot, has filled the house with antiques, including furniture.

French vintage fittings make a chic statement in the bathrooms.

The house features a return veranda.

Her business’ thousands of Instagram followers at @vintage_etc.au have also started following the account she set up chronicling the property’s transformation, @missmoss__newstead.

It was named after a former resident of the house, a Miss Moss, who served as a veterinarian and community leader in the 1920s and 1930s.

Hotblack said that according to local legend, Miss Moss was a somewhat eccentric figure known for attending church while dressed in her jodhpurs, shirt, riding boots and hat.

She was also often asked to mediate when families had disputes.

One historical society member told Hotblack about the time she wanted to become a primary school teacher but her mother insisted she become a high school teacher, and Miss Moss was called in to provide advice.

Hotblack said she is amazed at how much the garden has grown in four to five years, since she began creating it.

A shaded area near the separate studio, which would serve as an ideal work from home space or showroom.

Cantwell Property Castlemaine director Nick Haslam said locals and Melbourne-based treechangers have inspected the property.

“It’s the complete package, a Victorian renovated home on a decent-sized block with views and a spectacular garden,” Haslam said

He described the house’s restoration as “one of the most dramatic transformations I’ve ever seen.”

The house is for sale with a $1.15m price tag.

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Originally published as Newstead: 1890s-era house transformed into country-style haven by antiques dealer and artist