On paper, Noosa National Park couldn’t be more different to the Canadian wilderness. Filled with casuarinas, banksias and proliferating ferns instead of firs and maple trees; where you’re more likely to spot koalas dozing in the treetops and goannas sunning themselves than a mean-looking brown bear or moose, the Sunshine Beach section of national park is a little-known oasis just five minutes’ drive from the hubbub of Hastings Street.
Here, nudged right up against the forest, you’ll find Eh Frame ready to welcome you for a slow Sunshine Coast getaway. The new build was created by Canadian couple Matt Zuccaro and Dannielle Drake in homage to the cosy cabins you’d find in the ski fields. But even though they created Eh Frame (get it, Canadians say “eh” a lot) on a tight budget and timeline, sustainability was able to stay front of mind.
Clad in matte Colourbond with spotted gum beams and floorboards and lined with cypress pine, each piece of timber was sanded and stained by hand. “It was a real labour of love,” Matt says.
And whilst on a build of this size you could expect a couple of skip bins of waste, they were able to re-purpose flooring offcuts for shelving and narrow down their waste to just three small trailer loads.Â
“We re-used almost everything we could, every scrap was made for something,” Danielle says. “If there was a scrap we couldn’t use, our friend would take them and make bow and arrows out of them, or guitar picks.”
“…they were able to re-purpose flooring offcuts for shelving and narrow down their waste to just three small trailer loads.”
The experience starts when you park your car and wander along the treeline of Noosa National Park. Dappled sunshine and birdsong paint the scene before you walk up the steps onto the deck; your front-row seat to Mother Nature’s matinee. If you can hear road noise, don’t worry. It will soon be replaced by the call of cicadas and kookaburras, maybe even the grunts of Karl the koala.
“You really feel like you’re deep in the national park here even though the town is right there,” Matt says.
As you enter Eh Frame, you’re immediately wrapped in a warm timber hug, the eye drawn up to the loft in the cathedral-like space. Light floods in from carefully positioned windows.
Then, quirky vintage dĂ©cor catches your eye, much of it squirrelled into a suitcase and flown home from a pre-Covid trip to Canada – right down to the Mid Century mirror that hangs above the vintage drawers-turned-vanity in the bathroom.Â
With a background in architecture, Dannielle also has a talent for interiors, choosing sumptuous linen and towels, with cute retro-print sheets and Sage and Clare cushions and bedspreads a feature of the two bedrooms.
The well-equipped kitchen balances Smeg appliances with vintage mugs and glassware, overlooked by a mid-century starburst clock, made by a local artisan.
And while the interior bathroom is an experience in luxury with green terrazzo tiles, gold fittings, and natural Australian body wash, you’ll want to shower outside gazing up at the moon at least once during your stay.
“…you’ll want to shower outside gazing up at the moon at least once during your stay.“
This is the second building project for the couple after creating a Hawaiian-inspired tiny home named Hale Douglas in their backyard (also one of our Slow Stays). When their existing house on this block wasn’t being rented on Airbnb, they recognised the window of opportunity that Covid-19 presented and worked round-the-clock to get the A-frame built and listed within 12 weeks (while working their full-time restaurant jobs at night).Â
“Every time I look at it I’m like I can’t believe we built that. When I met Matt he didn’t even know what a power tool was,” Dannielle laughs.
When you’re craving a dose of nature therapy but like the idea of having civilisation – in the form of Noosa’s restaurants, beaches and boutiques – just a few minutes drive away, this beautifully appointed A-frame delivers an experience like nothing else in the region.
Book your stay at Eh Frame here.