Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: Easy, Breezy Inner-City Home Lets the Light Shine In
This serene – and stunning – new family home in Sydney's Alexandria is flooded with natural light despite its narrow site
Foodies fIock from all over Sydney to enjoy the cafes and restaurants in and around trendy Alexandria, and architect Elaine Richardson loves that the suburb is so close to the city but dotted with parks and is completely family friendly. She and her family were already living in the area when they spotted a dilapidated cottage with a For Sale sign out the front, and she immediately saw the site’s potential. The existing house had no original features worth preserving, and its terrible condition meant it couldn’t be saved – knocking it down and starting again was the only way forward.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Architect Elaine Richardson, husband Sam Willard, who works in the alcohol industry, and their three boys, Rohan (7) Jake (5) and Zach (3).
Location: Alexandria, an inner-city suburb of Sydney, NSW
Size: The 165-square-metre house sits on a long, thin 150-square-metre site (4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 living spaces and a pretty courtyard)
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Architect Elaine Richardson, husband Sam Willard, who works in the alcohol industry, and their three boys, Rohan (7) Jake (5) and Zach (3).
Location: Alexandria, an inner-city suburb of Sydney, NSW
Size: The 165-square-metre house sits on a long, thin 150-square-metre site (4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 living spaces and a pretty courtyard)
The terrace houses and cottages so typical of the inner-Sydney suburbs are usually positioned snug up against each other and traditionally bring in light through windows at both ends. Not so with this house, which has an internal courtyard that can become part of the house whenever the weather’s fine. In sunny Sydney, of course, that means almost all year round. Glass bi-fold doors running on tracks can be closed when necessary, but still allow plenty of natural light to penetrate.
The long wall abutting the neighbours also faces north, so positioning the courtyard here allows light into the centre of the house, a typically gloomy space in most terraces. “We had also maximised our floor space ratio (the amount of house we could build on our block) so this area is useable space for us, but wasn’t included in our ratio,” Richardson explains. “We love the internal courtyard; we use the space every day in summer. It feels like part of the house, but is outside.”
Chair: Barwon Easy Chair: Eco Outdoor;
Husk Outdoor Armchair: Space Furniture; planter: Essential Cylinder: Garden Life
The long wall abutting the neighbours also faces north, so positioning the courtyard here allows light into the centre of the house, a typically gloomy space in most terraces. “We had also maximised our floor space ratio (the amount of house we could build on our block) so this area is useable space for us, but wasn’t included in our ratio,” Richardson explains. “We love the internal courtyard; we use the space every day in summer. It feels like part of the house, but is outside.”
Chair: Barwon Easy Chair: Eco Outdoor;
Husk Outdoor Armchair: Space Furniture; planter: Essential Cylinder: Garden Life
Upstairs above the courtyard, louvred and bi-fold windows allow more cheerful northern light into the bedrooms.
The biggest challenges, as with most projects, was getting the plans through council (some amendments were required) and keeping within budget.
The biggest challenges, as with most projects, was getting the plans through council (some amendments were required) and keeping within budget.
Richardson and her husband chose polished concrete for the ground floor internal finish. “The structure was a concrete slab and I liked the idea of exposing the structure for what it was,” she says. “I also really like the look of concrete and that it can be heated.”
Although there is a TV in the living room, it can be hidden behind the cabinetry. “This is more of a grown-up space, however it is furnished with lots of colour – we still wanted it to be fun,” Richardson adds.
Archie Armchair: Jardan; Twiggy Floor Lamp: Space Furniture
Although there is a TV in the living room, it can be hidden behind the cabinetry. “This is more of a grown-up space, however it is furnished with lots of colour – we still wanted it to be fun,” Richardson adds.
Archie Armchair: Jardan; Twiggy Floor Lamp: Space Furniture
An additional TV room sits behind the kitchen. Richardson designed the home’s layout to be flexible, so the house could be adapted to the changing needs of their three young children, and their own.
“I love joinery,” admits Richardson. “Most rooms have some kind of built-in element.”
Joinery: EPK
“I love joinery,” admits Richardson. “Most rooms have some kind of built-in element.”
Joinery: EPK
A simple colour palette of natural timber and white gives the home a serene feel.
“We have a busy lifestyle and the house is low maintenance and calming,” Richardson says. “The home very much suits us.”
Dining Table: Domino Extension Table: Homeware Gallery Furniture Solutions
“We have a busy lifestyle and the house is low maintenance and calming,” Richardson says. “The home very much suits us.”
Dining Table: Domino Extension Table: Homeware Gallery Furniture Solutions
According to Richardson, the driving motivation for the design of the kitchen/dining area was for it to be family friendly, easy to maintain and pretty.
“We wanted a family table, and we didn’t necessarily want access to a TV, either,” she adds. “We were looking for conversation.”
“We wanted a family table, and we didn’t necessarily want access to a TV, either,” she adds. “We were looking for conversation.”
An additional deck at the rear may be small but there’s ample space for outdoor dining and firing up the barbecue, and the lush plantings give it the feel of an oasis. The timber bench provides additional seating when there’s more of a crowd.
Plants: Downes Wholesale Nursery; maple tree: Winter Hill Tree Farm
Plants: Downes Wholesale Nursery; maple tree: Winter Hill Tree Farm
When one of Richardson’s cousins saw the house, she couldn’t believe it. “There’s a tree in the house!” she said.
There’s even space for a patch of lawn for the kids beyond the rear deck, and a garage – essential in inner-city suburbs where street parking can be hard to find.
There’s even space for a patch of lawn for the kids beyond the rear deck, and a garage – essential in inner-city suburbs where street parking can be hard to find.
This home isn’t just welcoming during the day. The spotted gum lining the living room ceiling gives off a golden glow in the evening when the lights come on.
Spotted gum floorboards, linen curtains and white built-ins continue the soothing colour scheme upstairs into the main bedroom.
A large all-white ensuite is tucked into the attic space at the front of the home.
Bathroom products: Cass Brothers
Bathroom products: Cass Brothers
The children’s bathroom, on the other hand, is awash with colour and offers lots of room for toys and splashing about. A skylight ensures the space is as filled with light as the rest of the house.
Tiles: Blue 2 Mosaic: ColorTile
Tiles: Blue 2 Mosaic: ColorTile
Timber and natural greenery make an appearance in the children’s bathroom, too, one of many ways each area of the house is made to feel like a unified part of the whole.
Although there is a bedroom for each of the three boys, they like to sleep in one room together so Richardson turned this bedroom into a separate space for their toys. Fun was the name of the game here, and the loft bed can serve as a cubby house or spare bed for guests.
“There is, however, often a large selection of Lego left scattererd inside it which can be uncomfortable to sleep on!” Richardson confides.
Storage Shelves: TROFAST Frame: Ikea
“There is, however, often a large selection of Lego left scattererd inside it which can be uncomfortable to sleep on!” Richardson confides.
Storage Shelves: TROFAST Frame: Ikea
Externally, the couple selected natural bluestone for its beautiful colour and finish. “On the first floor we have spotted gum timber; spotted gum has a lovely varied colour,” Richardson says. The cottage to the right next door gives you an idea of what the house looked like before this one was built in its place.