Mortgages, Money and Me

Still Dreaming

A view of the Perth Hills Lakehaus showing landscaped gardens with lawn and crushed limestone pathways.

Two years on from building the Perth Hills Lakehaus, (see original post ‘Dare to Dream‘), Vic and Sandi after much hard work have completed the landscaping of their unique home with crushed limestone pathways, ornamental pear trees, hedging and manicured lawns straight out of a Garden Design handbook!


Starting with a bare red clay base and established gumtrees Vic and Sandi have integrated a formal and manicured garden into the natural landscape as if it has been there for the last hundred years while remaining true to the fundamental principles of the Bauhaus design movement.

Image of the Lakehaus after construction with bare red clay grounds.
Starting landscaping from a raw base of red clay.


They have saved considerable amounts of money by completing the works themselves, and though it has been backbreaking they have said that it has been satisfying to have prepared and planted every single tree, plant and blade of grass with their own hands.


I asked Vic and Sandi a few questions about the project:


What worked? 

  • Taking your time. Although anxious to make progress taking time to plan to scale and being flexible to change where you have to accommodate budget and supply.
  • Being open to suggestions and alternatives.
  • Invest in the right tools (Gorilla Cart became our best buy).
  • Break big projects down to small stages.
  • Agree a stop time or at a predetermined milestone so you can enjoy some downtime and appreciate your efforts.


What didn’t? 

  • Pressing on when you are overtired. Take a break!!! Be kind to your partner who is equally tired and frustrated!

What do you wish you knew then that you know now?

  • How long lead times can be, especially for good trades.
  • How to do levels properly, but we learned from our mistakes and got better at each stage.


Is there anything you would do differently with hindsight? 

  • Jump on You Tube if you are stuck. Someone has done it before and usually happy to share mistakes so you don’t have to. 


Do you have any shopping tips for supplies? 

  • Do your research and get referrals if you can.
  • Anticipate long lead times for certain items and have another stage of your project to progress in any event to keep moving forward.
An evening shot of the Lakehaus with warm interior lighting and views of lawns, an outside lounge and compacted crushed limestone pathway.
A view from the verandah of the Lakehaus over manicured lawns towards natural bushland.
A view from the Lakehaue over manicured lawns towards an avenue of ornamental pear trees.
A view across the garden of the Lakehaus that includes outdoor lounge seating on the verandah, limestone retaining walls, manicured lawns, hedging and a feature ornamental pear tree.
A view looking back towards the Lakehaus across compacted limestone pathway and lush manicured lawns.
A view looking back to the Lakehause across compacted limestone paths, manicured lawns and ornamental pear trees.
A view from the garden of the Lakehaus showing compacted crushed limestone paths, manicured lawns, the Lakehaus itself and a featured succulent planting.

Vic and Sandi certainly deserve to be proud of this beautiful oasis they have created in the Perth Hills that has definitively earned its place as one of Perth’s truly iconic homes.