A Postwar Canberra Cottage Gets a Gentle Upgrade
Colour, texture and a connection with the backyard were central to the sensitive renovation of this mid-century home
Georgia Madden
29 July 2021
In this Q&A series, we turn the spotlight on one thought-provoking renovation each week. Here, Kurt Crisp, architect and principal at Buck & Simple Architects, and Jen Burgess, interior designer at Texture Studio, share the journey of working together to gently modernise a humble postwar cottage – dubbed Ainslie Cottage – for a family of four, all while staying true to the home’s original character.
Images by Anne Stroud Photography
Answers by Kurt Crisp, architect and principal at Buck & Simple Architects and Jen Burgess, interior designer at Texture Studio
Who lives here: A couple with two children
Location: Canberra, ACT
Bedrooms and bathrooms: Three bedrooms and two bathrooms
Size of the house: 120 square metres
Budget: Around $400,000 for the architecture and interior design
Architect: Kurt Crisp, architect and principal at Buck & Simple Architects
Interior designer and stylist: Jen Burgess, interior designer and design director at Texture Studio
Builder: WQM Building Group
Joinery: Endeavour Joinery
Did you use Houzz for this project?
Burgess says: I always reference Houzz for inspirational imagery and I use it as a tool to explain details and styles to clients. It’s very helpful.
Answers by Kurt Crisp, architect and principal at Buck & Simple Architects and Jen Burgess, interior designer at Texture Studio
Who lives here: A couple with two children
Location: Canberra, ACT
Bedrooms and bathrooms: Three bedrooms and two bathrooms
Size of the house: 120 square metres
Budget: Around $400,000 for the architecture and interior design
Architect: Kurt Crisp, architect and principal at Buck & Simple Architects
Interior designer and stylist: Jen Burgess, interior designer and design director at Texture Studio
Builder: WQM Building Group
Joinery: Endeavour Joinery
Did you use Houzz for this project?
Burgess says: I always reference Houzz for inspirational imagery and I use it as a tool to explain details and styles to clients. It’s very helpful.
The kitchen before works
Describe the house
Crisp says: Ainslie Cottage is a mid-century, postwar government build that encapsulated the suburban dream of the era. It is a single-storey home with three bedrooms and two bathrooms.
What condition was it in?
Crisp says: The home was mostly original, including the joinery. It was well-maintained but tired and extremely minimal.
Ready to renovate your own abode? Find an architect near you on Houzz to help make it happen
Describe the house
Crisp says: Ainslie Cottage is a mid-century, postwar government build that encapsulated the suburban dream of the era. It is a single-storey home with three bedrooms and two bathrooms.
What condition was it in?
Crisp says: The home was mostly original, including the joinery. It was well-maintained but tired and extremely minimal.
Ready to renovate your own abode? Find an architect near you on Houzz to help make it happen
The kitchen before works
What wasn’t working for the client about it?
Crisp says: The original layouts predated contemporary ways of living and entertaining.
The flow between fixtures in the wet areas and the kitchen were inefficient.
Also, there was a beautiful view that was being cut off from the interior.
Burgess says: The spaces were small and dark and the house still had an outdoor laundry. Heating was an issue too.
What wasn’t working for the client about it?
Crisp says: The original layouts predated contemporary ways of living and entertaining.
The flow between fixtures in the wet areas and the kitchen were inefficient.
Also, there was a beautiful view that was being cut off from the interior.
Burgess says: The spaces were small and dark and the house still had an outdoor laundry. Heating was an issue too.
The kitchen before works
What was the client’s brief?
Crisp says: To bring the home up-to-date to suit their active and social lifestyles, and to create areas for better connection with the kids.
Burgess says: For the fit-out to remain in keeping with the existing home. There was also a priority for function, space and natural materials.
What was the client’s brief?
Crisp says: To bring the home up-to-date to suit their active and social lifestyles, and to create areas for better connection with the kids.
Burgess says: For the fit-out to remain in keeping with the existing home. There was also a priority for function, space and natural materials.
The kitchen after works
What were the client’s must-haves?
Crisp says:
What were the client’s must-haves?
Crisp says:
- Better thermal comfort.
- A connection to the backyard.
- More kitchen bench space.
- Less cluttered bathrooms.
- To open up the spaces and create a relaxed atmosphere.
- To create a kitchen that is a joy to cook in with timber benchtops.
Gained
Crisp says:
Crisp says:
- A new, larger kitchen, which included an extension to the backyard and a new area for causal dining.
- A renovated bathroom, which involved combining the separate toilet and bathroom and enlarging the room into the previous hallway by relocating doors and walls.
- A new internal laundry with a shower and toilet.
- New windows to encourage cross ventilation and draw in more light.
- Repositioned some internal doors.
- New rear deck.
- New furniture, lighting and paint.
- Restoration of period details.
What was the budget for the architecture and interior design?
Crisp says: Around $400,000.
Where did most of it go?
On rectifying the original home, tying in our additions and solid timber joinery.
Browse more images of Australian kitchens on Houzz
Crisp says: Around $400,000.
Where did most of it go?
On rectifying the original home, tying in our additions and solid timber joinery.
Browse more images of Australian kitchens on Houzz
What did you identify as the main problems or challenges with the interior?
Burgess says: It was clear that the home required updating and opening up. The dining, kitchen and living areas were disjointed and needed to become one space so the family could enjoy their home more comfortably.
Crisp says: We had to be very careful not to remove too much. We had a brief to achieve, but each time we looked at a detail such as a cornice or a rendered rebate, we had to consider if there was a way to work with it rather than remove it.
Burgess says: It was clear that the home required updating and opening up. The dining, kitchen and living areas were disjointed and needed to become one space so the family could enjoy their home more comfortably.
Crisp says: We had to be very careful not to remove too much. We had a brief to achieve, but each time we looked at a detail such as a cornice or a rendered rebate, we had to consider if there was a way to work with it rather than remove it.
What was your thinking behind the colour and materials palette?
Burgess says: The soft green-and-white colour palette was chosen as it was similar to an original colour within the home and drew on the Australian native colour palette that the client had recently planted in their garden.
The materials were selected for practicality and environmental reasons. The timber tops and doors were produced by Australian-owned companies and are largely recycled. The Polytec laminate to the kitchen cabinetry is manufactured from managed and renewable plantation pine.
Burgess says: The soft green-and-white colour palette was chosen as it was similar to an original colour within the home and drew on the Australian native colour palette that the client had recently planted in their garden.
The materials were selected for practicality and environmental reasons. The timber tops and doors were produced by Australian-owned companies and are largely recycled. The Polytec laminate to the kitchen cabinetry is manufactured from managed and renewable plantation pine.
We love how you’ve maintained the mid-century feel while giving the house a fresh look – was that a goal?
Burgess says: Absolutely. Character homes like this are why I love renovations. They are quirky and fun. If you stay true to the house, and show respect to the era it was built in, you end up with an amazing, fresh and unique result.
Burgess says: Absolutely. Character homes like this are why I love renovations. They are quirky and fun. If you stay true to the house, and show respect to the era it was built in, you end up with an amazing, fresh and unique result.
Crisp says: We tried to imagine what the home’s original designer would appreciate about how to design in today’s world. They were quite inventive, took risks and seemed to have fun. I like to think that they would be happy with how we’ve adapted the finishes and arrangements and tried to work with their palette, but not replicate it.
Tell us about the new deck
Crisp says: Originally there was a poky concrete deck with a brick balustrade that restricted movement and interrupted the view. By moving the door alignment, we were able to bring the laundry entrance inside the home and by replacing the old door with a new full-height style, we were able to bring light and views into the kitchen.
Crisp says: Originally there was a poky concrete deck with a brick balustrade that restricted movement and interrupted the view. By moving the door alignment, we were able to bring the laundry entrance inside the home and by replacing the old door with a new full-height style, we were able to bring light and views into the kitchen.
What are the defining features of the house now?
Burgess says: It’s unique and suited perfectly to the client’s needs. The home feels warm and inviting and the renovation has made it more comfortable.
Crisp says:
Burgess says: It’s unique and suited perfectly to the client’s needs. The home feels warm and inviting and the renovation has made it more comfortable.
Crisp says:
- The new design fits in seamlessly with the original home, not competing with it or recessing into the shadows.
- The timber joinery in the kitchen is very well fabricated
- Fun lighting.
- Refreshingly uncomplicated bathrooms.
The main bathroom before works
Why do you think the house works so well now?
Crisp says: The owners had a real appreciation of the original style of the home. Sometimes people will try to dress a building in a different style, which is very difficult to do without completely removing all remnants of the past.
In this case, we would work out why something was a certain way and then try to celebrate it with our own adaptation of the space.
Crisp says: The owners had a real appreciation of the original style of the home. Sometimes people will try to dress a building in a different style, which is very difficult to do without completely removing all remnants of the past.
In this case, we would work out why something was a certain way and then try to celebrate it with our own adaptation of the space.
Interior materials palette
- Thor’s Hammer recycled timber to the benchtops and overhead elements in the kitchen.
- Two-pack polyurethane cabinetry in Dulux Ramona and Polytec Florentine Walnut laminate in the kitchen.
- Beaumont Tiles wall tiles in the bathroom and kitchen.
- Perini Tiles ceramic patterned tiles to the bathroom and laundry.
- Polytec Florentine Walnut laminate to the bathroom vanity and laundry joinery.
- Cedar decking.
- Dulux Aoraki to the walls.
- Dulux Ramona to the kitchen cabinetry.
Interior fixtures and fittings
Your turn
Are you as impressed with this considered renovation as we are? Tell us in the Comments below, like this story, save the images for inspiration, and join the conversation.
More
You won’t want to miss last week’s magnificent renovation. See it here with this Before & After: The Unbelievable Makeover of a Small Semi in NZ
- Smeg appliances.
- ABI Interiors brushed stainless steel tapware.
- Reece Kado Lux bath tub and Tribute Art Round basin.
- Kethy Brutus walnut knobs to kitchen and bathroom cabinetry.
- Mirror and pendant lights sourced by client.
- Windows and doors by builder.
Your turn
Are you as impressed with this considered renovation as we are? Tell us in the Comments below, like this story, save the images for inspiration, and join the conversation.
More
You won’t want to miss last week’s magnificent renovation. See it here with this Before & After: The Unbelievable Makeover of a Small Semi in NZ
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Although I would have liked to see the beautiful original stove stay but apart from that, this has to be one of the best renos I've seen
Does anyone know what type of wood on the floor that is? Gorgeous!
@julietmurray Looks like Cypress Pine to me (we had it as the flooring in a previous house).