Claire’s Melwood Mod pool cabana transformed her garden from bare and boring to a relaxing resort.
And then, it transformed life for the whole family, just when they needed it most.
“I love it so much. It’s such a valuable, flexible space.”
Dead space, transformed
Before there was a pool, and before there was a cabana, there was nothing. Just a bare patch of grass and an unloved garden.
“Until we put the pool and cabana in there, it was a dead area,” Claire tells us. “It didn’t get any love from us because no one spent any time in there.”
One Melwood and a sparkling pool later, Claire’s garden was transformed into a place everyone wanted to spend time in. What was once dead space became one of the most used areas of their home.
But then, it became more than wanted… it became absolutely needed!
A backyard resort
This family of five were fast outgrowing their home, and with a generously sized block in Sydney’s sunny Northern Beaches, it made sense to spill out into their garden.
Firstly, a pool turned this unused area into a fun family hub… and then the cabana did the rest. With its addition, this formerly drab and dreary area came to life, transformed into a resort-style setting complete with a stylish poolside cabana for shade and shelter. This uninspiring outdoor space now had a spark and a purpose, becoming a relaxing place to gather, unwind or escape.
But it wasn’t just the finishing touch that completed the backyard’s makeover. It served the whole family in a multitude of ways.
Featuring a separate bathroom, it became a self-contained destination that was genuinely ready for anything.
“I use it when I have girlfriends come over. It’s a place where we can go and have a drink away from the kids who are around,” Claire tells us, “Sometimes my eldest son goes there and uses it for homework when he needs to focus,” she continues.
Claire’s stamp
Claire also restores and hand-paints beautiful furniture pieces, running her business, The Shabby Chick, from home. So, as a creative with a keen eye for potential and a talent for realising it, her pool cabana was never going to be just any old building!
Claire chose a Melwood Mod 18 as the canvas for her pool cabana, a design that’s modern and sleek with a skillion roofline, and highlight windows that fill the interior with natural light. She also made the most of the flexibility with personalising the design, upgrading the two visible sides of cladding to smooth cedar weatherboard, and adding full glass double doors and extra decking to the side, creating a corner of glass that opens onto a wrap-around deck.
To enhance the building’s modern appearance and create a striking look, Claire stained the cladding in Murobond Woodwash in “Black”, applying a clear lacquer to the doors to protect the timber from the elements and bring out its natural tones. Inside, she did what she does best, styling the space with her favourite upcycled furniture pieces and accenting a crisp white floor-to-ceiling finish with bold black and soft brown tones that echo the outside aesthetic.
“On the inside, I wanted to keep it clean and simple,” she tells us – something she clearly achieved.
An unexpected change
A beautiful backyard resort is one thing. But 2020 was approaching and unbeknownst to the world, lockdown was looming. And this Mod suddenly became an unanticipated lifesaver!
With the pandemic in full swing and everyone thrown together at home, the Mod took on a new role, converting into a home office… and the sanctuary every family needed at that time. Instead of the city commute, Claire’s husband, Ralph, retreated to the bottom of the garden every morning, and with self-contained facilities, there he stayed. The cabana became a home office where Ralph could complete a productive day’s work despite the challenging situation.
“If we didn’t have that, and he had to be in our living space, that would be very hard for him,” Claire reflected at the time, “He walks down the other end, and he comes back at night. So he still has that simulation of the workday.”
And for a family navigating work, school and the full chaos of daily life within the same four walls, that quiet, separate space at the end of the garden was everything.
“I can’t imagine the people trying to do all of that with little kids as well, all in a confined space; it fills me with dread,” Claire recalls.
For anyone who lived through lockdown with a full household, no further explanation is needed.
“The cabana has been a lifesaver.”
Worth it for life
That unthinkable time is now thankfully behind us, but the Melwood cabana continues to do what it has always done. Transforming the life and garden of this Sydney family and back to being a stylish summer sanctuary, a homework haven, a girlfriends’ gathering spot and a bit of everything else in between.
It began as the finishing touch to transforming a bare and unloved garden but has ended up as so much more. It’s a building that has grown with the family, adapted to their needs, and proven its worth over and over again.
“I think it’s going to be one of those things that’s always shared by the family,” says Claire. “It’s definitely worth it.”
Check out Claire’s stunning furniture pieces on Instagram, Facebook or her website.
| Design | Melwood Mod 18 |
| Size | 3.2m x 5.4m |
| Add-ons | Custom wraparound deck |
| Cladding | Western Red Cedar weatherboard Board and batten |
| Doors | Double timber-framed full glass with sidelights |
| Windows | White aluminium |
| Roofing | Woodland Grey Colorbond® |
All measurements are approximate.
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