oklouise, thank you for taking the time to pull together such a comprehensive and thoughtful design. There are lots of elements we like, and there are a few things we feel will be problematic. The reorienting of the house towards the East doesn't sit well with our vision of our living areas facing into the back yard. I love the courtyard area (screened room) you've created, but would prefer something like that at the back of the house, not the side. There is insufficient room to make the NE side of the house the 'back yard'. I like the storage you've created in the hall way but I still see the need to remove the old fireplace in the old kitchen, if it's cost effective and structurally possible. We'd like all bedrooms of a similar or standard size, so I'm not too sure about the smallish bedroom remaining the same size (the one with the toilet cut out of it). We'd like the front room to remain the main bedroom, and thus include an ensuite and WIR, rather than pushing the main bedroom to the back of the house. We don't want or need a third bathroom - just unnecessary and more room to keep clean!! Plus, there's no room for guests, LOL. We definitely want the garage to sit at the left hand side of the house, but probably a double carport moreso than a garage. We also like the idea of a built in desk/study that can be closed off - without building a whole study (room). So much to think about and your plan has provided some really different ways of thinking about the floor plan and orientation. Thank you for this. The parents outdoor retreat is divine!

All the 'sad' and disapppinted people commenting here; those who 'dislike this and that, or want to see 'character' retained, etc, etc, ought to get out more; to go see the world. As far as I can see, much of the architectual integrity HAS been retained. Is this 'sadness' a Victorian thing?; must we save all the old buildings, all the trees, the whole planet - from what? For what? Despite the hype, we're not likely to tip the place off it's axis anytime soon. Likewise with older houses; give them fresh breath, i say. Using whatever our creative and forward-looking brains can offer us is a positive solution to all things. My recently renovated heart agrees! This cosmetic reno' is nothing short of a grand improvement on its' former presentation; it's lighter, brighter and far more livable; refecting the owners outlook on life, I'd say. So, to all the 'experts', to those who want to pretend that they'd prefer to live in the dark ages - say, the 70's which were notoriously bland and most everything built then was built to a tough budget. ( I remember building in the 70's, in the 80s', renovating and building in the 90s', the nouties and still renovating now; i just can't seem to leach it out of my DNA as I complete the restoration of a 1930's Cal' Bung', one runied in the 70s' by some hapless 'handyman' who insatlled a plastic Chub and added a Victorian bull-nose verandah! All my homes turned out differently as my tastes and budget changed. Beginning in 1974 when I painted the front door of my 60's 2-bedder, bright yellow, the weatherboards 'Conifer'; the darkest posible green, now cracking in the sun, no doubt! Or has it been renovated by some 21st century house-hipsters? Then in 1976 I chose Avo' toilets, basins and bath ! Used native timbers, unpainted T & G everywhere, too ) I pulled out 'space wasting' french doors and installed open arches ! And wall-papered everything that didn't move. Not every so-called 'mid-century' home is a classic, or is worth preserving. Like this one probably was, they were pretty darned ordinary, particularly compared to those of the Victorian, Edwardian, the Art Deco and Californian Bungalow styles before them; all of which HAD definable chararcter, had enduring stlye; and are much sought-after and highly valued for having it laid, thickly, throughout. 70s' era homes were / are lacking wholly in character; and they lacked space, lacked insulation, lacked lots of design and comfort amenity we all want and deserve today. They're, nevertheless, given a new and longer life when younger eyes and energy are applied to their renovation, design and decor. Good on them!

What a great house! Photos would be helpful as well as ballpark budget and bit more project brief detail. Extensive renovation including extending/rebuilding certain areas on something this size could easily head towards a $1M exercise (or more depending). Alternatively a more consolidated solution that focuses on the currently awkward entry/kitchen flow/scenario, together with lighter makeovers to existing functional and working spaces could be achieved in half that or less, again depending. It could be a simple as moving the kitchen to the family and re-jigging the laundry so it's like a connecting butlers to the side of the kitchen. Current kitchen becomes a transitional space from entry into main L/K/D space. You then extend north/east as required to achieve the main living/family area, which may involve getting a bathroom in for the 5th Bedroom. This one reminds me of a few projects we've done. THey're not the standard run of the mill exercise and you have to be careful to contain costs as scope creep can run rife on these jobs. The KDRB option/alternative (council issues aside), whilst may seem appealing, would still be very expensive to comprehensively replace what you already have, which is a really unique and quite well set-up home. It just needs a bit of re-shaping really. It would be a real shame to bulldoze what you've got, as considering the shape of the block, landscape and orientation, you'd be likely rebuilding and replacing the house with something of similar general format, siting layout & zoning. www.pauldistefanodesign.com

I can just about manage to overlook the painting over the hard wood skirtings and architraves in the entry hall but to pull the unique pieces out of the overhead fretwork is sad. The bathroom, kitchen and laundry are lovely.