Most family homes follow the same logic: living and entertaining on the ground floor, connecting to the pool and yard, bedrooms upstairs. It’s a formula that works. But sometimes a site presents something so compelling that the conventional approach simply has to give way.
In Manly, on Brisbane’s Bayside, that something was the view. An elevated corner block with sweeping panoramas across the bay proved too good to bury at ground level, and so Carlton 2.0 was designed around a single bold decision: take the living upstairs and let the view do what it was always meant to do.
Interior designer Karen Kunst of KJK Interiors was brought in to shape the interiors of this upper-level living home, and the result is a superb example of modern luxe coastal design on Brisbane’s Bayside.
KJK Interiors’ Approach: Warmth, Cohesion, and a Material-Led Design Language
For Karen, every interior project begins with the same question: how should this space feel to live in? For Carlton 2.0, the answer was warm, calm, and seamlessly connected to the coastal setting outside.
Natural stone from SNB Stone and marble elevate the kitchen and living areas, their tones carefully matched to Polytec oak joinery and cabinetry throughout the home. Travertine finishes add textural depth, while a neutral palette keeps the interiors feeling grounded rather than cold. The exterior’s white-and-stone language flows inward naturally, so the transition from outside to inside feels effortless.
“Keeping to the same cabinetry colour throughout and large format tiles in the bathrooms created visual continuity,” Karen explains. It’s a discipline that rewards the eye throughout the home, every room feeling connected to the last.
Standout Interior Design Defines Carlton 2.0
Two interior moments in particular set this home apart. The curved rangehood, a bespoke element completed in early 2025 when such features were just beginning to emerge in residential design, is quietly ahead of its time and gives the kitchen a sculptural quality that elevates the whole space.
The dining room is the other. A corner fireplace from Haus Collective anchors the space, with a round conversational table and bespoke pendant centring the room beneath continuous sheers. Natural stone brings warmth and intimacy to what could easily have been a transient space, making it somewhere the family genuinely wants to gather.
Custom joinery by Jensen Designs handles storage throughout, while tile selections from Edge Tile and Stone complete the bathrooms with the same considered material language running through the rest of the home. Kitchen and bathroom fixtures from ABI Interiors and fittings from Haus Collective complete the refined coastal palette Karen had in mind from the start.
Interior Design Inspired by Light, Air, and Those Bay Views
The design decisions by Karen and the KJK Interiors team were shaped at every turn by the home’s most defining feature: the view. Glass was maximised throughout to keep the living spaces connected to the bay panorama, around which the entire design was built. Skylights throughout the kitchen maintain brightness on the upper level, while lighting from Wept Lighting enhances the natural light that floods in throughout the day.
The upper-level deck becomes the true hero space, the place where inside and outside dissolve entirely. Custom stacker doors with minimal threshold transitions create seamless flow between the kitchen and the expansive alfresco zone, maximising those bay views at every opportunity.
Related article: Contemporary coastal interior design shines in this Gold Coast beachside apartment
A Home That Feels Like a Hug
For Karen, the ultimate measure of a successful interior is the feeling it creates. “Great interior design means walking into a space and receiving a hug from the wall colour to the furnishings,” she says.
Carlton 2.0 delivers exactly that. The neutral palette, natural stone warmth, carefully zoned spaces, and seamless connection to the bay beyond create a home where functional family living feels genuinely embraced. It’s a testament to what KJK Interiors does best: interiors that are considered, cohesive, and deeply attuned to how people actually want to live.
Interior Design: KJK Interiors | kjkinteriors.net | @kjk_interiors
Building Designer: Big House Little House
Builder: PNC Built
Photography: Chris Brumby
