16 January 2026 Just been alerted by @nickolaivanlierop to this Edwardian house at 5 Westbank Terrace in Richmond - which doesn’t look like much outside, but inside sports an array amazing pressed metal not just on the ceilings, but whole walls too, with a variety of patterns. They’re mostly Art Nouveau, and some in very … Continue reading Pressed metal bonanza →

15 January 2026 Im getting in some shots before he’s attacked again - this is the statue of Captain Cook put up in 1914 (pic 5 is the unveiling). It’s an extra casting of an original of 1912 by sculptor John Tweed put up in Whitby in Yorkshire, the place where Cook first took to … Continue reading Captain Cook St Kilda →

January 2026 Another one of the very nice Art Deco Commonwealth Banks built around Melbourne in the 30s. This one dates from 1939, and it’s on Barkly Street at the end of the Acland Street shops. Apparently made out of two pre-existing shops. Like the others it features an entrance marked by a two storey … Continue reading Commonwealth Bank St Kilda →

January 2026 Curious place you’ve probably seen at the beginning of Kerferd Road, Albert Park, which sort of hugs the curved boundary. Since there’s a bay window up front, I assume it was Victorian terrace originally, then converted / expanded probably in the 1930s. I always thought it was turned into flats, since there’s two … Continue reading Kerferd corner →

12 January 2026 A rather decrepit looking Victorian cottage in Dickens Street Elwood, near Mitford, with a nicely elaborate use of block-fronting (imitating stone blocks) and lots of detailing around the windows. I thought it was maybe abandoned - but it’s advertised as a share house with 6 rooms and 9 beds ! Likely it … Continue reading Packed to the rafters →

January 2026 Great detailing if you look up - in Flinders Lane just west of Elizabeth. Leicester House was built in 1886, and kind of impressive - it’s not just things applied to a wall, but detailing wrapped around the deepset windows, plus prominent piers and cornices, and the cute scrolls up top inside Gothic … Continue reading A bit of depth →

January 2026 Right next to St Paul’s Cathedral is another very fine Gothic Revival design from the 19thC, with pointy arches, gables and a cute stepped tower, and would be better known if it was somewhere else. The site had been the old ‘parsonage’ for the Cathedral, which they sold in late 1890 when the … Continue reading Gothic on Gothic →

January 2026 Very grand house on Beaconsfield Parade West St Kilda that must have been built c1900, since it’s much like like a Victorian one, but with various Edwardian details - for intact there’s the very Edwardian gable up front, and timber detailing to the verandah, but also Victorian cast iron lace and two-tone brickwork … Continue reading Stenhouse house →

6 February 2020, updated new pics Jan 2026 No it’s not about the car, though I do like the colour - behind it on Beaconsfield Parade St Kilda West is something looks like it might be 80s Edwardian revival, but it’s actually a block of flats made out of an older house, like many in … Continue reading Biarritz outside, Victorian inside →

6 January 2026 Tucked behind the Woolies next to the St Kilda Station tram stop is this intriguing bit of public art. It dates from 1996, by Cliff Burtt, whose ‘cosmological work references history and legacy’, hence the astrolabe/sextant look. It’s a feature of a quite attractive block of social housing, all one beds I … Continue reading Public sculpture on social housing →