By Smac Studio
Ray White’s boutique in Rose Bay was designed to feel like a luxurious home, not a display office. “This is where we show prospective buyers high-end apartments to buy off the plan,” says associate director or Ray White, Daniel Ungar. “We wanted the reception area to be modern, inviting and different. Smac Studio transformed the original retail shell into a relaxed, opulent space. It’s very different from what our competitors have done.”
However, designing the entrance lobby was not without challenges. Measuring only 24 square metres with an internal width of 3.2m, the brief called for Smac Studio to incorporate large screens so artists’ impressions of developments could be displayed. “I recessed the main TV into a bronze mirror to soften it,” says Shona McElroy, principal of Smac Studio. “The mirror also reflects light, making the space appear bigger.”
McElroy zoned the space into three sections and designed it as a journey. Clients arrive and introduce themselves at the reception desk, which features large slabs of viola marble. “It feels like a brutal cutting of a huge marble block, heavy and luxe,” says McElroy. “The way it’s carved creates the illusion of different slabs floating on top of each other.” After reception clients wait by a semi-circular window on a soft curved couch, custom designed by Smac Studio. Finally they move to a dark timber meeting table flanked by a viola marble bench and splashback, or upstairs to a large private presentation space. “The dining set is sculptural and chic,” says McElroy. “When clients are here I want them to get excited about the potential of their home, that it could have the same high-quality design and details.”
OUTSTANDING FEATURES
Interior designers specialising in high-end residential projects.
Smac Studio creates bespoke spaces for our clients’ unique personalities and lifestyles. Elegant design with impact.
Shona McElroy, Principal: With a Master of Architecture from the University of Technology Sydney, Shona is an interior designer with a talent for clever spatial planning. Her creativity and unexpected design details have seen her nominated for an Australian Interior Design Award, a Dezeen House Interior Award and IDEA Emerging Designer of the Year. Smac Studio projects have been featured in international and domestic publications, including Vogue Living, Belle, Domino, Dwell, The Local Project and Est Living. Shona lives in the heritage suburb of Paddington in Sydney, Australia.