South Yarra: Olympic sailor Carrie Smith, partner Lachlan Richards list stylish reno project

Champion sailor Carrie Smith is selling 2/20 Cunningham St, South Yarra, after her and teammate Jaime Ryan represented Australia at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.

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Olympic sailor Carrie Smith and partner Lachlan Richards are hoping their stylish South Yarra apartment coasts to a great result next month.

The couple have extensively renovated the two-bedroom property at 2/20 Cunningham St and listed it with a $1.15m-$1.25m price guide, as they are keen to make over another home together.

Smith represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Olympics alongside fellow competitor Jaime Ryan, after they placed ninth in a World Championships event the previous year.

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She now works with up-and-coming sailors at the Victorian Institute of Sport and said travelling the globe for her career had influenced many creative choices she made while renovating the apartment, which she and Lachlan purchased in 2022.

“He runs a maintenance and renovation company, LR CON, and project-managed the whole process and I did all the designs and interiors,” Smith said.

When they bought the abode, one of two residences within a circa-1920s-30s building, it had sat vacant for years and been converted into several smaller rooms.

“It was pretty much unliveable, people thought we were crazy,” Smith said.

“We demolished all the internal walls except for one.”

Built-in banquette seating makes the most of the space available in the apartment.

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Australia’s Jaime Ryan and Carrie Smith compete in the 470 women’s sailing class on Guanabara Bay, Rio de Janeiro during the 2016 Olympic Games. Picture: AFP PHOTO/William West.

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The home’s vibrant green bathroom tiles were handmade in Europe.

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They discovered newspapers dated from 1917 during the project in which they aimed to honour the apartment’s period character while adapting it to modern life.

“My absolute favourite place in the world is the south of France, where I’m lucky enough to travel for work every year, I guess that’s where a lot of the inspiration for the colour palette and design has come from,” Smith said.

Cool features include built-in banquette seating, seats fitted to original box-bay windows and a living and dining section with northern orientation.

“I’m not afraid of colour, I wanted something that I’d walk into that would make me happy and would also be warming,” Smith added.

The apartment is located on the top level of its building.

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There are just two units within the Cunningham St complex.

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Perini tiles feature on the kitchen splashback.

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The kitchen’s island bench is topped with pink rose quartz, alongside Liebherr, Miele, and AEG appliances, soft-close cabinetry, and a combined butler’s pantry and laundry.

Smith described the bathroom as a “labour of love” with its eye-catching green tiles, gold accents, double rain shower and heated floor and towel rails.

The room’s curved tiles are similar to those often seen in Spain and Mexico, but rarely in Australia.

She and Mr Richards ordered them to be handmade in Europe and spent six months awaiting delivery.

The second bedroom has a queen-sized Murphy bed. Now you see it …

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Elsewhere in the apartment, there are vintage lights sourced from Italy, plus upcycled furniture and some custom-made pieces which they are happy to sell with the home if a buyer is interested.

The main bedroom has a walk-in wardrobe, while the second bedroom offers a fitted desk, queen-sized Murphy bed and built-in wardrobe.

Other highlights include a private rear staircase, courtyard, side entrance facing Oxford St,

ducted heating and refrigerated cooling, engineered timber floors and attic storage.

Several light fittings were sourced from Italy.

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Smith said Cunningham St was quiet and did not attract much traffic although it is close to Chapel St and Toorak Rd.

Kay & Burton Stonnington director Nicole Gleeson said the “super cool” apartment had attracted buyers including young couples, investors and people from outside Melbourne seeking a city base.

The property will be auctioned June 15.

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