Mud House, Castlemaine review: Substance with style

Paul Kalina discovers a mudbrick retreat in the bush with polished floors and vaulted ceilings.

There's a surprise as we pull into the driveway of our destination that promises to surpass what was meant to be the highlight of the weekend for the choo-choo-obsessed two-year-old - a trip on an authentic steam train that travels twice weekly between Castlemaine and Maldon.

An overexcited, super-size labrador that's unaware of its considerable girth knocks the little one onto his bum as he sidles up for a pat. Hilarious. For the remainder of the stay, the sight of the dog at the terrace door elicits squeals of excitement.

Mudbrick house outside Castlemaine. OK, I know what you're thinking. There was even a barbed joke to this effect in The Slap, when the couple Rosie and Gary and young brat Hugo pack up their troubles and move to this neck of the woods in the hope of making a fresh start.

For starters, this is no hippie shack. The Mud House is an elegant, handcrafted, villa-style studio built from thick and solid mudbrick. Come back in a couple of centuries and it will still be standing, or pretend for now it's a mediaeval villa in the hills of Tuscany, where well-heeled expats retire to write memoirs about unhappy love affairs.

Four sets of large double-glazed doors open to a cobbled terrace surrounded by untouched, natural bush. Inside, there's an open studio with a rounded nook at one end and a rustic wood-fired furnace, apparently of Danish origin.

A quick lesson in how to use the heater from the friendly owners, who live in an adjacent house with their menagerie of pets and a young daughter, and the furnace is pumping out an extraordinary amount of heat, enough to boil a kettle and keep the house warm the entire night. Despite warm spring breezes during the day, the temperature drops to low single figures in the evenings.

A vaulted ceiling and polished concrete floor help make the room even more airy - and dazzlingly bright. The unpainted, ochre walls and exposed timber beams and benches give it an earthy warmth. At the opposite end of the building is a bedroom with tall rectangular windows. With simple furnishing, it feels spartan yet elegant, as does the tile and concrete bathroom, which comprises a shower recess, basin and toilet. There's no door, which makes this a weekender for those used to - or willing to try - life in close quarters.

Kitchen facilities are limited to a sink that wasn't designed with dish-washing in mind, an electric wok, a mini-oven, kettle and toaster.