A Room of One's Own: Successful women share their favourite rooms

Today is A Room Of One’s Own Day in celebration of Virginia Woolf‘s 1928 essay of the same name. Within the essay, Virginia stressed that in order to write successfully, one needs a room of one’s own. But the need to have a place to unwind, to relax in, or be inspired is not simply the experience of writers. With this in mind, we have asked some successful Australian women to share their thoughts on their favourite space at home, how they spend their time when they are there, and why that particular room is so special. 

1. Lisa Messenger
Author and founder/editor-in-chief of Collective Magazine

I absolutely love my living room. It overlooks the Pacific Ocean and Tamarama beach and is filled with light and fresh sea air. It makes such a difference to my mood, to wake up to an amazing view like that every day. I find lots of my inspiration at home when I’m most comfortable, when I have made it reflect my personality. I curl up on the daybed under the window with my dog Benny and write for hours upon hours.

I love my white leather Moroccan pouffes that I bought when over there a few years ago. They were about $20 each ($350 at least in Australia) and they are so versatile to sit on, put your feet up on, use as side tables. Many of my most loved and cherished items are things I pick up on my travels. I love watching the craftsmanship behind them and looking at them in my home transports me to a memorable moment in time.

Photo: Beauticate

2. Megan Weston
​Abstract artist

My favourite space is my old studio in my house, since I relocated the art studio to a larger space. I love to just potter around and tidy up, The studio opens up onto a courtyard and I love to just enjoy relaxing with a book or invite friends over where we just hang out and have a few drinks and catch up.

I keep all my favourite things in the space; props from styling shoots with my art as well as collectables I’ve found over the years. My favourite piece would be a beautiful old timber filing cabinet that was apparently from the old Myer head office in Melbourne, I spied it quite a number of years ago when my partner and I were purchasing a house and decided we only wanted the house if the cabinet was also part of the deal! Luckily, with some creative negotiating it was ours. It now houses brushes, paints, pencils and paper, and over the years numerous other things. It’s just a beautiful piece of history and I love it.

Photo: The Block

3. Tara Moss
Author, human rights advocate and self-confessed vintage nerd

After six years of moving boxes and a very decrepit bathroom to work with, we built my dream boudoir last year using recycled and salvaged materials, in a space that was previously a dank laundry closet and part of an old bathroom. This is a personal space I love.This is where I keep all my favourite vintage things, my clothes and my shoes.

There are no devices in here – no computers, phones or TVs. It is tranquil. A little more than half of the items in it are over 60 years old. This is also the space I share in some of my blogs, where I do tutorials on vintage, so about once every month or so my husband, Berndt, will take some photos in here while I talk readers through victory rolls or wet sets. It is a hobby for me that takes me away from some of my more intense work, and I enjoy sharing it with like-minded vintage lovers.

I can’t narrow it down to one favourite item in this little room. I have special black and white pictures on the wall of my father and my late mother in the late 1960s, a signed photograph of my late friend Tura Satana of Faster Pussycat! Kill Kill! and more, so it is a sentimental space in some ways, but also very functional. Joan Holloway’s vintage compact from Mad Men sits on the wood counter top, which was made by my husband from a huge tree that fell in our yard during a storm. If it had fallen the other way, it would have crushed our bedroom, so we love that tree and what we have made with it. I don’t put anything in this space that isn’t either necessary, beautiful or important to me for sentimental reasons. I keep my professional writing areas separate from this room, so I have a small space to call my own that I do not associate with work.

Sometimes I write in our vintage caravan, or at various tables in the house (I like to move around), but this is a space reserved for relaxation and preparation for the day – never book deadlines.

Photo: Berndt Sellheim

4. Tracey Spicer
TV news anchor, radio broadcaster, journalist

I love working in my office. As soon as I close the door, I’m transported to another world. One wall, floor to ceiling, is lined with books. I am currently writing my memoir, so most of the time is spent tied to a computer! Whenever I’m here, I feel nourished by the memories and words.    

Many years ago, I bought a book called The Hand That Signed the Paper by Helen Demidenko. It is one of Australia’s most famous literary hoaxes: the novel is now available under the name Helen Darville. This is a constant reminder to always write authentically.

Photo: Supplied

5. Kara Rosenlund
​Photographer, stylist, adventurer, author and storyteller

The room that I can call my own is the kitchen. The time spent here is usually creating nourishment for those I love, so it’s an emotional yet creative space. Baking, cooking or making a simple cup of tea over a conversation is what I love the most. I feel completely happy and at ease in this room I’ve created. It feels comforting and familiar.

I have brought the kitchen together in a way that reflects who I am and how I like to live. I love seeing all my favourite bits and pieces daily, collected on various trips around the world and in Australia. Nothing beautiful should ever be concealed within the cupboards, so thats why I love having it all out. Nothing is particularly valuable or precious, though it is to me in an emotional sense. I have a collection of old antique wooden spoons that I’m very fond of for no other reason besides they look beautiful.

Photo: Kara Rosenlund

6. Sarah-Jane Young
Lifestyle blogger

There are many spaces within my home that I love, but I particularly enjoy spending some “me” time and family time in our courtyard. While I am definitely not winning any awards for the world’s most elaborate garden, I do love being outdoors. We purposely designed a courtyard that is low-maintenance and that fits with our home’s modern design. This includes some luscious creepers and vibrant succulents. I particularly enjoy our dusk dinners during the warmer months, and keeping cool in our lap pool.

There’s no one item here that supersedes another, but more about how much I enjoy my time spent out there – particularly now we can share it with our baby girl. I love sitting out there with a picnic blanket watching the trees blow in the wind, watching her face light up with amazement.

Photo: Supplied