Bold and beautiful home makes its mark

Brightly coloured homes are a rarity among the muted tones that dominate Canberra’s housing streetscape.

So Craig Richardson is accustomed to the attention his bold blue house in Hackett receives.

“When people step inside they are generally surprised at how large and light-filled the house is, and most love the unexpected pops of colour in the living areas,” Richardson says.

The Richardsons chose restful shades of blue for the outside, and accents of blue and purple inside for the three-bedroom house.

“I have never been a fan of bland shades and even growing up as a child we got to choose feature wall colours in our rooms. The idea of having colours here probably stemmed from that,” Richardson says.

Rather than call in an interior designer, it was a case of trial and error to get the palettes spot on.

“We tried a few different colours and just winged it,” he says.

The Richardsons renovated and extended the property in 2003 and 2007 creating a tree house-style home in a mature garden setting metres from the foothills of the Mount Majura nature reserve.

“There is something very peaceful about living here, it’s so close to the city but we don’t get the through traffic, and there is lot of wonderful bird life,” Richardson says.

The home has an art studio and is within walking distance of amenities.

No. 72 Rivett Street, Hackett is for sale through Luton Properties Dickson agents Jenny and Michael McReynolds. Price guide: $930,000. EER: 0.5. Inspect: Saturday, 10-10.30am and Wednesday, 5-5.30pm.