It's only been a few months since Juliana Martin moved into her new townhouse with her husband, two boys and dog Charlie, but already she's happy with how it's styled.
This shouldn't be surprising as she's an interior designer.
"(I describe my style as) a mix. I love modern; I love antique," she says.
"My thought is, with every piece, there is a story. I look at that vase it is from Italia, or I look at this one I remember I brought it from Brazil. Or a trip to see my family in Central America.
"You need a piece to have your own style."
Martin has been running her interior design business on King Street since 2016, and in 2017 the Herald featured the stylish townhouse she rented in Cooks Hill. Her connection to the Herald continued, as she moved from Cooks Hill to the paper's former inner-city Bolton Street site, which is now the Herald Apartments.
This time she's in Maryville, and when we interviewed her in early December, she already had her Christmas tree up.
Stylist Louise Hatcher told her about the new Maryville development on Throsby Creek and encouraged Martin to check it out as there were only two left on the market.
Martin took the plunge.
She made a few tweaks to the house after they bought it, changing the lights in the kitchen and the curtains with the help of Valley Vogue. She chose neutral and light colours for inside the house.
"It's easier to sell a lighter colour and it's more my style," she says.
Like her homes before, she always has it filled with fresh flowers.
"Every week I go to Belflora, I always buy there and they last longer," she says.
The decor and art are from her travels.
I lived my whole life in apartments, for me this house is big.
In the kitchen she has a new Moroccan rug she loves and French posters on the wall.
Her furniture is mostly European or local. The sleek circular marble dining table is by a European designer. She has chairs from local furniture shop Monsoon Living, and accessories from Nordic lifestyle store Pappa Sven.
A classic Eames chair sits in the lounge room.
"This armchair is a very famous design," she says.
"For me it's a piece of art; it's worth it to pay because it will last generations. I'm sure my kids will have that chair; it's very comfortable."
Also immediately noticeable is a bookshelf that almost appears to be hovering; it's vertical and freestanding. It's an Italian brand she got from Space Furniture.
One of her sofas is from King Living in Sydney, but she changed the colour and had it reupholstered by local business Chapman Upholstery. She also created a little office space under the stairwell.
"It was a dead space; we needed to find a little corner where we could have the desk with the computer. I thought no one's gonna use here, let's do there, and then it looks good," she says.
Now that their home is perfect, the family are getting to know the neighbourhood.
"We have some friends around and it's a nice area," Martin says.
"It's a mix of artists and chefs and nice coffee shops. It's next to the dog park. Charlie is very happy."
She loves the Maryville Tavern on the corner and getting to know her neighbours, most of whom are downsizing.
Within the new townhouses, she believes her family is just one of only a few with young kids.
Some might not think her home is huge, but for her, as a Brazilian, the three-bedroom home is plenty.
"I came from a big city where we live in apartments. I lived my whole life in apartments, for me this house is big; at least (now) I have two floors," she says.
"In Brazil it's normal to live in a small apartment. Average in Brazil is 90 to 100 square metres. For us: two kids, two adults, it's perfect."
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