Another year older. Another year wiser. Another year spent bringing you inspiration. Thank you for being here with us day after day. You know you are our friends. You make it all worth while. We hope your holiday season is merry and bright. And one day Kim, all your Christmases won’t be white… especially if you come visit me in the subtropics!

It is that time of the year after all! Let’s go back fro a second helping from SIMO Design. I can’t resist the sophisticated neutral palette of their latest work – the Vermont House.

Ho ho ho! It’s almost time for reindeer and a jolly fat man. I wouldn’t be unhappy if I found anything refurbed by architect/designers Sam Gnatovich and Alexi Rennalls of SIMO Design in my stocking. (OK hard to fit a California Bungalow or a midcentury modern house in a stocking but you know what I mean 😉 I love that even while modernising these homes they have retained the original. It’s a young, vibrant take on the family home.

At this time of the year the cities and towns across Australia empty as the population begins the annual Christmas migration to the beach. It is the ultimate family daydream to own a beach shack with water views or if you can’t afford to buy one then at least rent it for the two weeks around Christmas and into the new year. Sun, sand, surfing and copious amounts of seafood and alcohol. That’s the way to celebrate Christmas in the Great Southern Land. Today I’m stalking the ultimate beach shack at the most easterly tip of Australia, in the celebrity holiday town of Byron Bay. Owned by the Arnott (biscuit) family it is known by the locals as “The White House”. Time to check the biscuit jar for the extra coin though. Asking price is over $6 million AUD. Ouch! You can rent it for around $14 000 a week (Kate Moss and Elle Macpherson have). Save me a place on Boxing Day. I’ll bring the prawns and champers. Link here while it lasts.

European style meets Hollywood Regency. The transformation of this Madrid space from what was once shabby offices (and before that the headquarters of a religious order) to a sophisticated and glamorous family homes is nothing short of stunning. From the restoration of fine architectural details to the pure exuberance of the decoration it is the work of interior designer Soledad Suárez de Lezo. Can you believe she was once a lawyer before following her heart and training as a designer? Soledad emailed us to share her success at being published in one of Spain’s hottest interior design magazines Nuevo Estilo. These are some of the images from the 16 page spread they did called Luminous Beauty. Congratulations Soledad – both on the feature and the amazing transformation. Luminous beauty indeed!