Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: A Surprising Intervention for a Typical Postwar Home
A triple-fronted brick-veneer house is transformed into a contemporary home inside with Art Deco-inspired finishes
The unassuming triple-fronted brick-veneer house is ubiquitous across Australia, having been the common housing typology after World War II. These homes were usually easy to build, relatively affordable and designed for family living. Typically, they had minimal decoration and it is a rare few that have renovations that receive much attention (unlike Victorian terraces, Federation villas and Queenslanders). This triple-fronted brick-veneer house redesigned by Pleysier Perkins certainly bucks that trend with a carefully crafted alteration and addition providing contemporary spaces, while preserving the architectural features and spirit of the original house.
“The client asked for a thoughtful and modern intervention to inject the house with another lease on life, while working with and maintaining the existing ‘true-blue charm’ features,” says Berit Barton of Pleysier Perkins. “Our design transformed the house into an ‘entertainer’ with a generous kitchen/meals/living area, an outdoor kitchen under an operable roof and a new lap pool.”
“The client asked for a thoughtful and modern intervention to inject the house with another lease on life, while working with and maintaining the existing ‘true-blue charm’ features,” says Berit Barton of Pleysier Perkins. “Our design transformed the house into an ‘entertainer’ with a generous kitchen/meals/living area, an outdoor kitchen under an operable roof and a new lap pool.”
Taking advantage of the sloping property, Pleysier Perkins designed a lower-level addition with a new open-plan kitchen, living and dining area that flows out to the outdoor terrace, garden and lap pool.
“While the two-storey building showed good bones and architectural features worth keeping, the property presented some major challenges,” says Barton. “An old concrete driveway dominated the south-facing backyard and led deep into an existing rear garage. The challenge was to get enough light into the new open-plan living area and to work with the existing driveway access without having too much impact on the use of the garden.”
“While the two-storey building showed good bones and architectural features worth keeping, the property presented some major challenges,” says Barton. “An old concrete driveway dominated the south-facing backyard and led deep into an existing rear garage. The challenge was to get enough light into the new open-plan living area and to work with the existing driveway access without having too much impact on the use of the garden.”
Dark bricks define the new extension from the existing house, as does a steel-finned facade. As a contemporary nod to the wrought-iron railing, it curves to form a fence separating the garden and driveway. The verticality and curves of this screen will become a recurring theme throughout the interior, with crafted timber screens and curved walls to enhance light and spatial flow.
The upper-level floor plan
The front entrance to the house is at street level. This floor has four bedrooms and two bathrooms, including a parents’ retreat that opens to a deck with a rooftop garden. “A parents’ retreat was not a must, but a bonus, and was achieved by having a second lounge that connects to the master bedroom via a new roof deck/garden,” says Barton.
The front entrance to the house is at street level. This floor has four bedrooms and two bathrooms, including a parents’ retreat that opens to a deck with a rooftop garden. “A parents’ retreat was not a must, but a bonus, and was achieved by having a second lounge that connects to the master bedroom via a new roof deck/garden,” says Barton.
The lower-level floor plan
Downstairs, the new open-plan living, dining and kitchen connects seamlessly to the outdoor areas. A laundry and a powder room are located close to the garden, pool and service lane for convenient access.
Downstairs, the new open-plan living, dining and kitchen connects seamlessly to the outdoor areas. A laundry and a powder room are located close to the garden, pool and service lane for convenient access.
Like the steel-finned facade, a curved timber-batten screen defines the entrance and stairwell, and incorporates a shelf and drawer.
Pale oak timber floor: Woodcut
Pale oak timber floor: Woodcut
Pleysier Perkins increased the building envelope by only 25 square metres for the downstairs addition. The dining table sits near the base of the stairs where there is a more intimate sense of space, while the kitchen and living space are located alongside the deck with views of the garden and pool.
The butler’s pantry is enclosed with a curving timber-batten wall, with the study tucked behind.
White-oak joinery: Concept Click
The butler’s pantry is enclosed with a curving timber-batten wall, with the study tucked behind.
White-oak joinery: Concept Click
Pleysier Perkins selected materials and finishes to accentuate and complement the craftsmanship of the house and its history, including Art Deco-inspired elements such as the curves, glass and beautiful stone benchtop.
The long horizontal pendant and the vertical cupboard handles continue the linearity of the timber battens and steel fins, as does the joinery of the upper cabinets and the veining through the benchtop and kitchen island.
Kitchen benchtops: Signorino; stonemason: StoneLux; upper cabinets: Cos Interiors
Kitchen benchtops: Signorino; stonemason: StoneLux; upper cabinets: Cos Interiors
A large L-shaped skylight above and around the kitchen brings natural light deep inside the home.
The skylight wraps around the upstairs terrace where it separates the upper-storey deck and roof garden.
Sliding glass doors and windows open the downstairs kitchen and living space to the outdoor entertaining and dining area. A barbecue is built-in, and the finned awning can be opened or closed depending on the weather.
The lap pool extends down one side of the property, with the far end shaded from western sun by an existing liquidambar tree.
The master ensuite is located at the rear of the house where it faces the rooftop terrace and has a view into the tree canopy.
Indigo-coloured carpet adds a sense of Art Deco luxury, and the timber headboard extending across the wall has built-in side cabinets with marble tops. The ensuite is contained within a curved black wall with fluted timber joinery adding texture and an interplay of light.
Intergrain Enviropro fluted timber joinery: Concept Click; Indi Escape Velour carpet: Supertuft
Intergrain Enviropro fluted timber joinery: Concept Click; Indi Escape Velour carpet: Supertuft
The shower is located within the curve of the wall, while dark, luxurious finishes – including black sinks, cabinetry and a marble vanity top – create a sense of retreat.
One round skylight brings natural light into the double-head shower, and square tiles accentuate the geometry of the curved wall and reflect light from the skylight and mirror.
Ceramic tiles: Signorino
Ceramic tiles: Signorino
Pleysier Perkins used a lighter palette in the other two bathrooms (the children’s upstairs bathroom and the communal downstairs bathroom). This palette is accented with a black bathtub, basin and marble vanity top.
Both the master bedroom and upstairs living space look out to the deck, which is surrounded by the glass skylight above the kitchen and flanked by the rooftop garden.
Your turn
Are you as impressed with this addition as much as we are? Tell us your favourite features in the Comments below, like this story, save the images, and join the conversation.
More
Keen for another dose of design inspiration? Take a look at this Houzz Tour: Life’s a Beach House for This Family of Six
Your turn
Are you as impressed with this addition as much as we are? Tell us your favourite features in the Comments below, like this story, save the images, and join the conversation.
More
Keen for another dose of design inspiration? Take a look at this Houzz Tour: Life’s a Beach House for This Family of Six
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with children
Location: Melbourne, Victoria
Size: 338 square metres with four bedrooms and three bathrooms
Architecture and design: Pleysier Perkins
Landscaping: Andy Murray Landscape Design
With iron railings and colourful stone paving, the front of the house has more decorative detail than the typical triple-fronted brick-veneer house. Large picture windows bring northern light into a front bedroom and family living area, and allow a visual connection with the garden and street.