My Houzz: Tradition and Romance Live On at an 1875 Estate

Patty Mouhtouris describes her husband, Roger Keys, as a nomadic wanderer who doesn’t stay in one place for long. This was never more true than the day he returned home from a business trip to the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, and announced it was time to start packing. Keys had found the family’s dream home.

Summerlees Estate is a heritage-listed property that sits on 70 acres of lush grazing land in the picturesque town of Sutton Forest, halfway between Sydney and Canberra. Mouhtouris and Keys updated the interior to highlight some of the home’s original features, while decorating it in a traditional style. They revamped other parts of the property to include rental accommodations; the estate’s history and beauty make it a popular wedding venue.

Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Patty Mouhtouris and Roger Keys; their children, Tomas (age 21), Mikel (19) and Georga (16); and their Australian Border Collie, Sassy
Location: Sutton Forest, New South Wales, Australia
Size: 7 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, on 70 acres
Year built: 1875

The stately home was built in 1875 by R.P. Richardson, a founding member of Richardson & Wrench, one of Australia’s first real estate agencies. Since then the house has seen its share of notable Australian families and their guests, including the first high court judge of Australia and the David Jones family, who founded the oldest department store in Australia and kept the property as a holiday retreat for 30 years. Local historians recall the family’s descending upon the area every summer, traveling by train from Sydney in their own private carriage and bringing a staff of 30.


More recently the Arthy family served as the custodians of Summerlees and was largely responsible for bringing the home back to its former glory. When the Arthys took over ownership in the early 1980s, the home was in a state of complete disrepair. They even discovered goats living in what is now the family room. They helped to clear some of the overgrown landscaping to reveal this wraparound porch.


The Arthy family embarked on a huge renovation, restoring the building to livable conditions and updating the layout for contemporary living. They managed to retain the building’s original footprint while removing 13 rooms within the center of the house, including a children’s dining room and extensive servants’ quarters.

The conservatory, shown here, is one of Mouhtouris’ favorite spots.


When Mouhtouris and Keys moved in back in 2004, there was still plenty of restorative work to be done. In typical 1980s fashion, the previous owners had plastered the home in decorative wallpapers and red cedar cladding, with a color scheme of salmon pink and Brunswick green throughout. Mouhtouris and Keys had the ceilings painted white and the walls painted a warm neutral color, which helped to lighten the space. A central wall between the dining area and lounge was removed and replaced with a long breakfast buffet.

The couple used locally sourced materials for the renovations, employing only local contractors and tradespeople to do the work.





They tried to retain as many of the home’s original features as possible. Their motto throughout the renovation was to keep things simple and to enhance rather than destroy.

Shown here is one of the home’s nine original fireplaces. Mouhtouris and Keys added built-in bookshelves on either side of this colossus, providing excellent storage and a lovely backdrop for the fireplace.

Transom windows were added above the existing windows to complement the scale of the vaulted ceilings, and to allow more light to enter the room. Wherever possible, the couple added north-facing windows, drenching the rooms in light.


They left the kitchen virtually as they found it; the original brick fireplace is in excellent condition. Mouhtouris painted the walls and cupboards herself, and added the plantation shutters above the sink.

The couple included an old friend that has traveled with them from home to home for the past 20 years: a vintage Carmichael stove from the 1930s. It tucked into the fireplace perfectly.


Mouhtouris spends most of her mornings working on her laptop in this well-appointed armchair as the sunshine pools in the breezeway. Sitting on the chest of drawers is one of the many light fixtures that embellish rooms throughout the house. Mouhtouris has been collecting them for the past 20 years.


The game room sits in the western wing of the home; it was added by Mouhtouris and Keys when they moved in. The addition blends seamlessly with the existing home and is a fun space where the couple’s three children can hang out with friends.

The pool table came with the home and was the second one ever built in Australia. Mouhtouris and Keys commissioned a pool table restorer to painstakingly repair it. It took several months to remove the layers of paint and repair the damage.


This formal sitting room is decorated in cream and dusty blues, for a soft feel.


The home’s seven bedrooms are upstairs. Each is blessed with a view to the pretty landscape. The master bedroom is surrounded by windows and includes a balcony. The couple left the windows largely undressed to allow the rich morning sun to wake them and to afford a view outside.

Mouhtouris chipped off a piece of the original wallpaper and matched the lovely duck-egg blue for the walls. Her favorite chandelier, which she calls her peacock chandelier, hangs from the ceiling.


The balcony is overgrown with wisteria creeping its way up from below. Original fretwork delicately frames the front expanse of lawn and the farmland beyond.


The chandelier in the main entrance is from India. Its ornate pattern and graphic dimensions complement the original stained glass windows surrounding the doorway.


The original locks are a reminder of the home’s stately past, with the Royal Seal of England stamped on each one.


The family’s Australian Border Collie, Sassy, escapes the heat under the shade of the veranda. Mouhtouris and Keys installed York stone paving around the outside of the house to define walkways and patios and combat dampness.





Andrew the resident peacock strolls the property in all his splendor.


Summerlees Cottage was the original residence on the property; it was built around the 1850s. When Mouhtouris and Keys first viewed the cottage, it was completely dilapidated and hidden by overgrown hedges. They knew the most pragmatic solution would be to demolish the structure. However, with their love and understanding of old homes, they tirelessly renovated the cottage and brought it back to life.

Today the cottage pays its way, providing highly sought-after accommodations for tourists and wedding guests.


Looking at the property’s history, Mouhtouris discovered that Summerlees had been a favorite venue for weddings and other special events since the 1890s. Operas and dances were a regular occurrence, with guests venturing from far and wide to take part in celebrations.


In the 1890s a ballroom was added to the property, allowing for such festivities to be taken to a new level. It’s said that at one party in the late 1950s, Prince Phillip was seen fox-trotting around the room.

The ballroom now augments the many wedding facilities on the property.


The original stables provided the color palette for the exterior of the main house and the surrounding buildings.

When Mouhtouris and Keys moved in, the house was a garish pink. Mouhtouris took a section of the stables to Dulux, which used it as a reference to come up with a beautiful color for the exterior of the home. Old paintings of the home indicate that it is similar to the original color.


The former stables provide a great wet-weather option for ceremonies. Rustic decor and Shabby Chic–style accessories fit in beautifully with a rustic wedding aesthetic.


The Summerlees gazebo is a well-preserved relic; it was listed for heritage protection even before the home and surrounding grounds.


Upon entering the property you are greeted by a classic wrought iron farm gate with traditional picket fencing and a rustic Summerlees sign, all of which are original and in great condition. The driveway takes you on a meandering journey past cows and horses up to the main house.


Mouhtouris sits with Sassy in front of the ballroom. She says she has a love affair with the home, waking early every morning to roam the property and falling in love with it just a bit more.

She’s grateful her husband acted on his wanderlust, and considers their family to be, as she says, “caretakers of Summerlees for the time we are here.”

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