Harry Potter actor Hannah Fredericksen renovated the Hepburn Treehouse in country Victoria in just five weeks.
How This Actor Transformed a Cabin in the Woods into Mid-Century Luxe Accommodation
Harry Potter actor Hannah Fredericksen renovated the Hepburn Treehouse in country Victoria in just five weeks.
Welcome to The Makers. Each week, we celebrate innovators, artisans, and crafters of all types by taking you on a private tour of their creative spaces. For this instalment, we tour actor Hannah Fredericksen's mid-century cabin Hepburn Treehouse in Hepburn Springs, Victoria.
You wouldn’t think acting and renovating have much in common, but for Melbourne-based actor Hannah Fredericksen, these polar opposite worlds require a remarkably similar skillset.
Hannah purchased her mid-century marvel among the treetops of Hepburn Springs, Victoria, in June 2022. “I have always loved the area for its art, food and wine but when I saw those huge A-frame windows I thought: ‘That’s my kind of church!’”
The mid-century cabin boasts idyllic views of sprawling treetops and local flora and fauna. And it was thanks, in part, to these gorgeous natural features that made it possible for Hannah to turn the place from cabin-in-the-woods to luxe accommodation in just five weeks. “The Hepburn Treehouse was running by the end of the following month [after I bought it] – a bit mad when I look back at it!”
“I painted the outside of the cabin, spruced up the painting inside, changed the kitchen splashback, added curtains and removed some hideous built-in wardrobes to make the space bigger – plus brought in all of the new furniture and homewares!”
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Sage Tablecloth, and Olive Napkins.
The other part that made it possible? “Sheer determination,” she says.
Having no prior renovation experience, and performing in ‘Harry Potter & The Cursed Child’ six nights a week at the time, Hannah used every spare moment she had to bring Hepburn Treehouse to life. “I would spend my one day off from sunrise to sunset working on the house, and often drive out to Hepburn and back before the show and be madly washing paint off my hands five minutes before the show went up!”
But Hannah says it was her acting career that gave her the grit, resilience and adaptability required to pull off this kind of challenge.
“Rejection is what I do for a living… Adaptability is a massive tool that you're forced to have when you work as a creative, in terms of no day being the same, and your expectations are constantly shifting.”
Being accustomed to dynamic environments, Hannah saw Hepburn Treehouse as another opportunity to learn and thrive among unfamiliar territory. “I didn't have any experience before, I really just learnt on the go to be honest – and look, it just shows you… at the time I was a single woman going out on my own, and you can absolutely do it!” she laughs.
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Recreate Hannah's look with the Terracotta & Rust Quilted Bed Cover, Terracotta Sheet Set, and Rust Pillowcases.
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Hannah’s resilience and determination paid off, and the result is a peaceful refuge for both herself and the guests she hosts. “I wanted the space to feel luxurious but not pretentious – somewhere that felt like an elevated escape but where guests would still feel comfortable to sit on the rug in front of the fire or curl up on the bed with a book.”
The interior styling combines Hannah’s fondness for mid-century design, and an appreciation of the space’s architecture, “I just love that sort of warm, very lived-in, timeless interior. And I felt like the house lent itself really well to that.”
As you enter the quaint cabin, an exposed timber ceiling draws the eye upwards, forming the structure of the open plan living area. Each piece of furniture has been thoughtfully selected by Hannah to complement the cabin’s mid-century bones. Hannah’s favourite items are the first pieces she purchased for the home; an emerald green set of armchairs off Facebook Marketplace; “They’re the most delicious shade of green, and they’re on wheels which makes it easy to swivel them around and face either the fire or the trees!”
If you’re thinking of creating a beautiful rental such as this, Hannah has one word of advice; Don’t put anything in there that you couldn’t stand to lose or have broken – 99% of your guests will be amazing but the other 1% won’t treat it like it’s your home.”
For more from Hannah, follow her @hanfredericksen & @thehepburntreehouse
Photography by Amelia Stanwix. Styling by Beck Simon.
