Do you love where you live?

It’s an important question, because creating a home is not just about forming a structure or furnishing it with objects. It’s also about connecting with your surrounding environment and the greater community.

Earlier this year I put the finishing touches on a new book — my fourth! — about my local community, and the inspiring people and homes that I’ve discovered in Byron Bay since moving to this region on the east coast of Australia four years ago.

It was a true passion project — and a great joy — to feature the homes of friends, new and old, and get to the heart of what it means to create a home, and how important it is to love where you live.

And so in-between local lockdowns during a global pandemic, I set to creating a book to shine a light on Byron Bay, the local version. You may have heard of the area because of its natural beauty or what you’ve seen in the media. But there’s so much more to this region.

While this area is sometimes painted with a broad brush, I wanted to highlight the nuance, depth and character of its people and places.

So, let me introduce you to Home by the Sea: The Surf Shacks & Hinterland Hideaways of Byron Bay and within its pages I take you on a personal tour of eighteen inspiring homes — from humble beach shacks to architect-designed homes — that belong to a range of creative types who will leave you feeling inspired and energised that anything’s possible.

This is a book about community and creativity, living intentionally and the value of loving where you live.

I would like to thank all of the homeowners who made this book possible, as well as my collaborators, photographer Amelia Fullarton and designer Holly McCauley, who are fellow locals and helped bring this project to life.

Thanks also to my publisher Hardie Grant for publishing my fourth book. The other titles are This is Home: The Art of Simple Living, Still: The Slow Home and Style: The Art of Creating a Beautiful Home.

You can now pre-order Home by the Sea. If you’d like to reserve a copy for yourself or a gift for a loved one (the book comes out just before the Christmas holidays), you can do it today and get access to a FREE bonus — Byron Bay Local’s Guide. It’s an insider’s guide to Byron Bay, created thanks to the recommendations of all everyone who features in the book.

To grab your copy of the Byron Bay Local’s Guide just enter your details and receipt/order number and you’ll be notified when the guide is ready to download.