FEATURE LISTING: Gorgeous in Goodwood
When Louise and Lachlan Wicks decided it was time to start a family, the couple found this picturesque 1890s cottage to make their home.
Newly married and ready to start a new chapter of their lives together, Louise and Lachlan Wicks moved back to Adelaide in 2018 after living interstate.
The couple met in Perth while Lachlan was working there for BHP and Louise was receiving her Master’s degree to become a pharmacist.
They fell in love and realised they were both originally from Adelaide and had even gone to school together.
They moved to Melbourne for five years, but decided to move back to Adelaide to settle down near family and friends.
Looking for a place to start a family of their own, the couple fell in love with the three-bedroom, two-bathroom home at 1 Simpson Parade, Goodwood.
“We purchased the home because it was cute, the location was great and the size of the house at the time suited us,” Louise says.
“It was a great home to start a family,” says Lachlan.
The couple soon had three young boys to enjoy the home with and found the substantial garden space and living areas wonderful for their growing family.
Louise and Lachlan adored the cottage’s charming facade and layout but knew it could do with an internal upgrade.
“We saw the potential to give it a bit of a renovation,” Louise says. “It needed a little love and a lick of paint.”
The couple began by painting the home inside and out before adding new door handles, light fittings, curtains and blinds.
Louise and Lachlan modernised the open-plan living space at the rear of the home with a brand-new kitchen and modern appliances, while maintaining the character charm in the front rooms.
“We wanted to keep the original home quite classic, so we put in chandeliers and decorative archways and gave the old wooden fireplaces a touch-up,” Lachlan says.
Existing colonial windows in the open-plan living room were replaced with floor-to-ceiling glass panels.
A sliding door opens to the backyard and allows seamless indoor-outdoor entertaining.
“It is really nice because you can be in the kitchen preparing food and having a chat with your friends with a glass of wine, but with the big glass panels you can see out to the backyard and supervise the kids as they run around,” Louise says.
Another task was adding a new pergola where the family enjoys long lunches with friends and outdoor dinners during the summer months.
The yard offers plenty of room to play with a vast lawn, lush garden beds and a cosy cubby house tucked away at the back.
“Lachlan even added a veggie garden to the backyard for my birthday one year,” Louise says. “We absolutely love it and it has been fantastic to grow seasonal vegetables for us and the kids.”
Louise and Lachlan have thoroughly enjoyed living in Goodwood, making the most of their proximity to the city and King William Road, as well as all the nearby parks and playgrounds.
“It’s only about two kilometres to the Adelaide Central Markets so I can walk there with the stroller, and if I am feeling a bit lazy or the boys don’t want to walk, the tram goes right into the city,” Louise says.
As the boys grow up, Louise and Lachlan have decided they will need more room for their family, but it is a bittersweet departure from their much-loved home.
“We have had all three of our boys while living here and the home and location have been fantastic,” Lachlan says. “Unfortunately, we have outgrown it and we need some more room.”
The sale is being handled by Ben Clarke and Orlanda Paglia of Williams Property.