It’s not every day that a homeowner converts a six-bedroom property into a one-bedroom penthouse. But there’s nothing cookie cutter-esque about entertaining extraordinaire and Australia’s favourite homemaker Chyka Keebaugh. Since she and her husband, Bruce, founded the iconic catering and events firm, The Big Group, in their mothers’ kitchens in the early ’90s, the couple have always taken the path less travelled. It’s led to la dolce vita and this palatial pied-à-terre in inner-city Melbourne, which is brimming with vintage treasures and mementos collected from around the globe. It’s a veritable jewel box filled with colour, curiosities and many happy memories. “I love pattern, colour and texture,” says Chyka. “And I must go to a flea market wherever I am in the world.”
Who lives here?
Entertaining doyen, author and TV personality, Chyka Keebaugh, her husband Bruce and Cavoodle, Otto. They’re both founders of catering and events company The Big Group. Their adult children, Chessie, 31, and BJ, 29, are frequent visitors.
How do you like to entertain? Chyka: “We love cocktail parties and dinner parties; we can comfortably seat about 12 people here.”
Bruce: “Sometimes it’s nicer to have three or four people over for a beautiful lunch, so you can really connect. That said, I often end up inviting everybody.”
Best styling tip? Chyka: “Move your decor around every couple of months. I get so much joy from changing things up.”
A new life stage for Chyka Keebaugh
A few years ago, after selling their family home – the Keebaughs still have a weekender on the Mornington Peninsula and a Sydney pad – Chyka and Bruce invested in two three-bedroom apartments in trendy Richmond, off the plan. “The kids were studying and working overseas,” recalls Chyka. “We didn’t know whether they were coming back and if we should buy another house.” When it became clear that daughter Chessie, now 31, and son BJ, 29, weren’t returning any time soon, Chyka and Bruce pivoted. “We wondered, ‘Why don’t we just live here?’” shares Chyka.
Since the empty nesters didn’t need all those bedrooms, they consolidated the apartments into one sprawling penthouse tailor-made for entertaining. At one end of the apartment is a vibrant living room and a separate library; a central kitchen, dining and cocktail zone leads to a formal sitting room; and at the other end is one generous bedroom, dressing room and ensuite bathroom. Concealed behind the kitchen is a butler’s pantry and laundry. Two powder rooms round out the floor plan. An idyllic terrace runs the length of the penthouse: “Of course, I’ve stuffed it with as many plants, pots, wicker baskets and cushions as you possibly can,” says Chyka with a laugh. The couple added skylights and, in place of walls, steel-framed glass doors and windows to wash the interiors with light.
Inside Chyka’s penthouse apartment
Every corner is filled with antiques and curiosities that tell a story, from Chyka’s cache of green cabbageware to a taxidermy peacock that greets guests in the foyer. Then there’s the 120-kilogram haul of gleaming French copper pots hanging above the kitchen island bench. “They were still wrapped in 17th- and 18th-century newspapers,” says Bruce. “One is from King Louis XV’s kitchen,” remarks Chyka. “Of course, no-one’s allowed to use that one!”
Chyka’s most treasured decor
Chyka’s been collecting since she was little. “I travelled a lot with my parents and would always buy a little tea strainer or picture or whatnot.” She amassed a “glory box” that finally got its day in the sun when, as young newlyweds and burgeoning business owners, the Keebaughs appeared on the cover of Home Beautiful in 1994. Surrounded by said keepsakes and flowers, “I was very pregnant with Chessie in that photo,” muses Chyka. “I wore Bruce’s orange business shirt because I didn’t have maternity clothes big enough.” However, due to a rogue mop in the background that went unnoticed, the elaborate shoot had to be recreated days later. “There was no Photoshop then,” quips Chyka. “But it was fabulous. We were so honoured to be asked.”
While their business and homes have evolved in the three decades since, this magnetic couple have stayed true to their maximalist style and sense of fun. “We’ve given this home a lot of personality,” says Chyka. “It tells our story – the life we’ve lived together and all the travel we’ve done,” says Chyka. With many more chapters to come, no doubt.
Step inside Chyka’s penthouse apartment foyer
Chyka found the bubbly objet d’art hanging from the ceiling in the entry at John Derian in New York. The table is from an auction house; the chairs are by Brownlow Interior Design.
“I love having spaces that you can create inside your home that are all individually different, and yet somehow work together” – Chyka Keebaugh
In another corner of the entry area is an antique green Cuban cupboard. Armed with a photo, Chyka painstakingly selected slippers in a Moroccan souk to match the cupboard. “The shopkeeper didn’t speak any English, but he eventually understood what I was trying to achieve,” she recalls. “It’s a beautiful little story that gives me joy.”
Kitchen and dining
A custom buffet designed by Bruce and made by Graham Geddes Antiques displays a smorgasbord of Chyka’s keepsakes. It can be rearranged into three separate sections with their own tabletops for entertaining. “The chairs are covered with a mix of old suzanis that I bought in India and some Tigger Hall Design fabrics,” explains Chyka. Seventeenth-century chandeliers sourced from Graham Geddes Antiques have been updated with wicker shades from Amazon. The flooring was crafted by First Element.
Butler’s pantry
“If you hide things in a cupboard, you’ll never use them,” says Chyka Keebaugh of her top-shelf collection of cabbageware, as seen through the entry to the butler’s pantry finished in wood veneer.
“Our home is like a little jewel box in the sky” – Chyka Keebaugh
Library
Walls in Porter’s Paints Maidenhair in the library provide an elegant backdrop for a Nicholas Harding painting (Copyright Agency 2025) and Chyka’s collection of ceramic birds. Tamsin Johnson designed the chairs that are covered in Lee Jofa ‘De La Tour’ fabric in Paolos Green. The lamp is from Cromwell and the 17th century Portuguese desk was sourced at Graham Geddes Antiques. A bespoke Turkish rug by Carpet World in Mornington adds to the cosiness, while a hidden Murphy bed accommodates guests.
We love… colour drenching
Chyka has curated an art-filled, kaleidoscopic home featuring a green-drenched library, a fuchsia-toned living room and a sitting room dubbed the ‘gold room’. The colour drenching is bold and on trend. “I love having spaces that are very individual, yet somehow work together,” says Chyka Keebaugh. The ‘pink room’ is her favourite (to see another celebrity ‘pink room’, check out Bec Judd’s home). “It’s a very happy space, and surprising. You can’t imagine someone could shove so much colour into such a small area.”
Apartment living room
An Imants Tillers artwork informs the honeyed palette of this living room, known as ‘the gold room’. The armchair and sofa are from Restoration Hardware, the Andrew Gourlay lamps came from a previous home and the sideboard was purchased at auction.
“I bought the three father, son and grandfather figurines [atop the sideboard] when I was in Hong Kong, as I’ve always been a big collector of blue and white China,” shares Chyka. The walls are finished in wood veneer. This material was also used in the kitchen.
Sitting room
Aptly dubbed ‘the pink room’ due to the fuchsia Grazia & Co sofas and armchairs, the Keebaughs love to watch TV in this living room, “with dinner on our knees,” says Chyka. “It’s probably my favourite room. On a cold, rainy day, you can look outside and feel warm and cozy.” The artwork on the left is by Todd Hunter; the vintage portrait of Chyka’s mum Vanesse marked her 21st birthday. The coffee table is from Restoration Hardware and the custom rug is from Carpet World in Mornington.
Raspberry-toned books amp up the monochromatic scheme. Positioning the books vertically and horizontally creates different shapes and maximises shelf storage space.
Powder room
An artwork by family friend Michael Pithie adds interest to one of the powder rooms. The wall lights are from Cromwell and the towel is from Turkey.
Main bedroom
Chyka Keebaugh infused a muted palette in the apartment’s only bedroom, making it a calm place to unwind. Bruce says their Sleeping Duck bed – with a Heatherly Design bedhead – is so comfortable, they’ve installed it in their other homes. Because they couldn’t see the “extraordinary” city views from their bed initially, the couple raised it. The doona is Sferra and the bedlinen was sourced in Morocco. The bedside table is from Coote & Co and the mirror is from Cromwell.
Chyka Keebaugh engaged artist Kate Sellars-Jones to craft nine painted ‘plates’ on calico, “to represent the story of our life together,” for her and Bruce’s 25th wedding anniversary. “They were inspired by the fabric on the loveseat in our bedroom, painted in the colour tones of our room and have a lovely Chinoiserie feel.” The seagrass wallcovering is from Tigger Hall Design.
The vintage armoire is from Graham Geddes Antiques and is filled with Dehua (white Chinese porcelain) collected by Chyka and the ottoman is also from Graham Geddes Antiques and has been reupholstered with fabric from Tigger Hall Design. Carpet World supplied the carpet and the curtains were made by Peninsula Curtains & Blinds.
The walk in robe features the same wood veneer joinery as seen in the butler’s pantry.
Alfresco
A gorgeous table setting, underpinned by a Chyka Home tablecloth from Harris Scarfe, sets the scene on the terrace, which runs the length of the penthouse and wraps around the bedroom of Bruce and Chyka Keebaugh, filling their home with light and views. Chyka always prepares fresh flowers or foliage the day before she entertains, but stresses that they needn’t be fancy. “You can use fresh herbs you’ve picked from your own garden or a couple of lemon tree branches,” she says. “It’s about knowing and showing guests that you’ve gone to effort because they’re coming over.”
The sun-drenched terrace features climbing Stephanotis and star jasmine. “I have potted plants that I move around depending on the time of year, such as pansies, hydrangeas and mint,” says Chyka Keebaugh. All the couple’s outdoor furniture was sourced from Restoration Hardware.
Shop Bruce Keebaugh’s latest book
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By Invitation Only: The World’s Most Beautiful Parties by Bruce Keebaugh and Robyn Lea
$105.95 (was $150), Angus & Robertson
We’re reading ‘By Invitation Only: The World’s Most Beautiful Parties’ by Bruce Keebaugh, published by The Big Group, which showcases its most lavish events. “It was very emotional and fun to look back on all those years and parties,” says Bruce.
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