Asked to "Go Wild", This Australian Designer Built an Emotive Home Around 15 Complementary Colors — Each One a Nod to the Family's Personalities
Energy, saturation, and cheekiness are the hallmarks of Ruby Shields' aptly named Joy Haus, a new striking coastal build where hues serve as architecture
When interior designer Ruby Shields was approached by one of her first-ever clients and asked to "go wild", it felt like a dream come true. Such a loose brief does not come often, and Ruby, whose design studio, Studio Shields, was still very much in its infancy, was thrilled to have landed it.
Tucked into the beautiful coastal enclave of Mount Eliza, the home she was to let loose upon belonged to Clare, Mitch, and their two young, energetic boys.
Technically, the project entailed a renovation and an extension. But what the family actually needed was a new build, one that could house their lifestyle, cheekiness, big personalities, and, above all, a whole lot of joy. Ruby took the assignment seriously — well, metaphorically, not literally.
Ruby describes the redesigned kitchen as the "workhorse" of the home, with the island functioning as "somewhere to prepare food, entertain, gather, and dine".
A self-confessed storyteller, Ruby began her process in search of what she calls the "thread". "Every project begins by finding the one idea, personality trait, or story that holds everything together," she explains. "Once we've found that, every design decision becomes much clearer."
In the case of this commission, the thread came from the name she settled on for it: Joy Haus.
"For us, joy wasn't simply an emotion we wanted the home to evoke; it became a design methodology," says Ruby. "Every decision was considered through that lens: could this detail create delight? Could this color pairing make someone smile? Could an unexpected material or playful gesture elevate an everyday moment?"
Powder blue and burgundy form the base of Ruby's colorful ode to the homeowner's personalities.
Armed with this simple checklist and a request for cork flooring and a two-toned exterior palette (the client's only "must-haves"), a narrative unfolded in the most organic of ways, culminating in a home that packs the happiest of punches.
Joy Haus has a carefully choreographed story, and color is the key that unlocks it. Powder blue for the sky and Clare's big dreams, burgundy for the earth and Mitch's grounding energy. This wasn't a design centered around favorites or latest trends, but rather Ruby's perception of the family's personalities.
"The palette evolved into more than 15 carefully choreographed hues," she explains, adding that, rather than selecting colors room by room, they treated color as architecture. "Every color responds to the light, orientation, and purpose of its space, but equally importantly, to the spaces before and after it," adds Ruby.
While Ruby finds it hard to pick a favorite detail, the blue bathroom is high on her list. "That room became this little pocket of joy that still makes me smile."
Ruby describes the journey through the home as "cinematic". From its stand-out blue-and-burgundy façade, the home continues to unfold in the most playful yet considered of ways, where bold moments are seamlessly followed by quieter, more neutral spaces. "Color became the organizing principle," she explains.
Don't get fooled by its playful energy: no detail of Joy Haus was rushed or left up to chance. While each room carries its own unique energy, they collectively speak the same language, "like chapters of the same book", Ruby says.
"Each space was designed around its own mood and purpose, while recurring materials, carefully balanced color relationships, and consistent detailing create a common thread throughout the home," she explains. "The house constantly shifts in atmosphere, yet always feels unmistakably Joy Haus."
Hard-wearing cobblestone flooring and an upholstered bench seat provides a functional but beautiful spot to pause.
The reconfigured floor plan places the communal zones at the home's rear, transforming the dialogue between the inside and outdoors. Boundaries are dissolved by large stacker doors, allowing the kitchen, dining, and living areas to spill into the sun-filled garden.
"For a young family, this meant parents could cook, entertain, or simply enjoy a quiet coffee while remaining visually connected to the children playing outside."
For all its flow, Ruby says this design was not simply reliant upon the absence of walls. Again, color, along with materials and joinery, comes to the fore, delineating rooms through subtle transitions that overlap and borrow from the spaces that have come before them.
"Rather than the outdoors being something to look at, it became an extension of everyday life," says Ruby, describing the easy flow between the home's living areas and garden.
Of equal importance were sightlines. Whether it's a glimpse of the checked cork flooring as it leaks from one room into the next or a pocket of color framed by a doorway, every view and vignette is intentional.
"Those visual moments stitch the house together, creating a sense of discovery without ever feeling confusing or disjointed," says Ruby. Instead of rushing things, she warns, "you have to listen to the house, the client, and the light."
Visual creativity carries over into the furniture and objects that fill each room, too. Representing a collection of Australia's artistic voices, it was important to Ruby that these pieces spread across several aesthetics and spanned decades — even the children's ceramics have a special spot right next to handcrafted artisan pieces. The result is a blended style that can easily be passed down to and carried on by the family.
"The clients were wonderfully open to the process," says Ruby of the color-drenched spaces. "They trusted us completely, which allowed us to push the project much further than we otherwise could have."
"Clare discovered vintage burl bedside tables at a local antique market. Rather than replacing them, we elevated them with new hardware and paired them with a custom upholstered bedhead using Kirby Design fabric," recalls Ruby.
"The best interiors are never purchased all at once. They're thoughtfully collected over time, layering emerging designers, vintage finds, and iconic pieces to create something deeply unique."
Although beautiful, the home holds its own where functionality is concerned. Plenty of integrated storage, hard-wearing and durable finishes, such as tiled kickers, gloss-painted skirting, and stone thresholds, ensure it stands up to the demands of even its smallest and most rowdy occupants.
Ruby describes the home's art and styling as a "collection of personalities", where artisan pieces sit alongside the childrens' work.
As Ruby puts it, "function and beauty are never opposing ideas. The best materials don't simply survive family life; they become more beautiful because of it."
In its final form, Joy Haus is an ode to her love of design and the power of color, but there's more to it.
"It's about creating a home that feels deeply personal, where every material, every hue, and every detail contributes to a story that couldn't belong to anyone else," she says.
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Need an example? Check out our recent interview with production designer Rodrigo Martirena and get behind the scenes of color-drenched satirical drama Rosebush Pruning.
