When your nearest neighbour is a few kilometres awayย and the only shop inย a respectable distance sells groceries, for those who value interiors and homewares, living in rural Australia canย easily become the kiss of death.
But for Tracy Lefroy, being based on a farm in regional Western Australia inspired her to bring beautiful homewares to the people of her hometown, by creating her store,ย Cranmore Home.ย Offering itsย waresย online, in a permanent showroom in Moora and via pop-up retail events throughout WA, Cranmore Home stocks a combination of Australiaโs tried and tested favourite brands, alongside emerging Australian artisans.
โLiving in regional WA meansย that Iย am not influenced by what is being shown in other shops, simply because there are no other shops near me,โ explains Tracy. โIย have a very strong idea of the aesthetic Iย am creating at Cranmoreย Home so Iย know pretty quickly if an artisan is going to fit with that.ย This is not an aesthetic with an eye on emerging trends, but one which values longevity over fads.โ
With her permanent showroom in her regional hometown of Moora, Tracy is not content in serving just that area’s residents, hence the pop-up events taking her across the state to a very receptive audience.
โIย just love the pop-up retail events in regional WA,โ says Tracy. โIt is such a treat to bring amazing Australian-designed homewares to an audience that is not normally able to access these brands in their own region. We have also had access to some amazing venues, such as Beermullah Shearing Shed, where we converted this beautifully renovatedย shed into a styled venue, suchย asย I have never seen before.โ
Working where she doesย has the obvious challenge of being geographically removed from the artisans whose work she sells. But Tracy believes this separation also sees her removed from others’ influences, allowing her to stay true to her own values. Her latest big idea is her inaugural Winter Workshop. Being held on 28 June at the farm where she lives, Cranmore Park, the eventย will bring the peopleย behind the brands at Cranmore Home to WA to share their skills.
โThe Winter Workshop will provide the opportunity to attend intimate workshops of just 15ย participants with some of Australiaโs most talented artisans,โ explains Tracy. โThe day will be divided into two sessions, with a long tableย lunch of local, seasonal food and paired wines. The Workshops have been tailored to suit anyone from a novice to a well-skilled artist.โ
The Workshop will be made that much more special by being based inย Tracyโs historic farmhouseย home, where she lives with her husband Kristin and their three children. Currently halfway through a ten-year renovation plan, the process of designing and styling her house is what inspired Tracy to start her own shop in the first place.
โMy own aesthetic is one and the same as Cranmore Home,โ says Tracy.ย โLiving in and renovating an old home has given me such an appreciation for the longevity of great design. It was when we moved into our home thatย I really honed my love of design and became focused on only filling my home (and so my shop) with Australian-designed products thatย I truly loved.โ
With a busy schedule of pop-ups and workshops as well as monitoring both her physical and online shop, Tracy is in no way slowing down. Butย thatโs exactly how she likes it.
Comments
Tracy Lefroy says
Thanks so much for this post Olivia – it is such a thrill to be featured on one of Australia’s leading Interiors blogs xx
Indi & The Wolf says
Tracey’s farmhouse is beautiful. She has started something wonderful in her home town that she should be really proud of.
Jen Bishop says
Too true!