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Pro Spotlight: How to Update Your Heritage Home & Keep Its Charm
Want to bring out the best of your home's history and make it more liveable for today? A Melbourne architect reveals how
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Who: Rebecca Naughtin of Rebecca Naughtin Architect
Location: Melbourne, Victoria
In her own words: “Clients come to us looking for pragmatism and innovation – they want practical solutions for family living and a beautifully designed home that will stand the test of time. As an architect, the best part of my job is seeing how much joy our homes bring them.”
Melbourne architect Rebecca Naughtin has been designing and renovating homes in Melbourne and its regional surrounds for 17 years, more recently extending her reach to eastern Victoria. “We work on a range of exciting projects, from beach houses to new builds in rare urban blocks, but our bread and butter is alterations and additions to older homes, such as Victorian and Edwardian terraces, interwar and mid-century homes,” she says. “Most of our clients in inner Melbourne have older homes with original features they adore, which are often heritage-listed. But that doesn’t stop us from having fun with elements such as the rear facade and interiors, as we know how to navigate heritage overlays and issues associated with older homes.”
Location: Melbourne, Victoria
In her own words: “Clients come to us looking for pragmatism and innovation – they want practical solutions for family living and a beautifully designed home that will stand the test of time. As an architect, the best part of my job is seeing how much joy our homes bring them.”
Melbourne architect Rebecca Naughtin has been designing and renovating homes in Melbourne and its regional surrounds for 17 years, more recently extending her reach to eastern Victoria. “We work on a range of exciting projects, from beach houses to new builds in rare urban blocks, but our bread and butter is alterations and additions to older homes, such as Victorian and Edwardian terraces, interwar and mid-century homes,” she says. “Most of our clients in inner Melbourne have older homes with original features they adore, which are often heritage-listed. But that doesn’t stop us from having fun with elements such as the rear facade and interiors, as we know how to navigate heritage overlays and issues associated with older homes.”
Design for how you live now: Older homes may have charm and character in spades, but that doesn’t make them perfectly suited to modern living; “Many were designed for a European climate, looking inwards and ignoring natural sunlight and outdoor spaces. They are missing good cross ventilation, northern sunlight and adequate insulation,” says Naughtin. “The layout, with bathrooms and laundries at the rear, also doesn’t allow for a strong connection between the kitchen, living and dining spaces and the outdoor entertaining area – something most people are looking for today.”
So what are the main things Naughtin’s clients are hoping to achieve with their heritage home renovation? “Smarter use of space, a connection with the garden and more storage, particularly in smaller homes. Since the pandemic, a study is high on the wish-list too.
“Sustainability is another priority. Most of our clients want better thermal performance with improving insulation and glazing, more natural light and ventilation. Many also want to add solar panels, batteries and solar hot water,” she says.
So what are the main things Naughtin’s clients are hoping to achieve with their heritage home renovation? “Smarter use of space, a connection with the garden and more storage, particularly in smaller homes. Since the pandemic, a study is high on the wish-list too.
“Sustainability is another priority. Most of our clients want better thermal performance with improving insulation and glazing, more natural light and ventilation. Many also want to add solar panels, batteries and solar hot water,” she says.
Understand the amount of work required: If you’ve got your heart set on bringing your heritage gem back to life or updating it for a contemporary lifestyle, Naughtin says it’s important to go into it with your eyes open. “Don’t underestimate the sheer amount of work required to ‘make good’ the existing structure of a period home.
“The age of these homes means they often haven’t been inspected or maintained over the years, which can mean costly elements like electrics and plumbing need replacing, and old structures need reinforcing. And the whole process is likely to take longer than you think,” she says.
But if you’re up for the challenge, the payoff can be well worth it; “There’s nothing quite like breathing new life into an older home that hasn’t been shown much love for years. And if done with some sensitivity and panache, you have the opportunity to create something truly special,” she says.
Here are Naughtin’s top three tips for success when renovating a heritage home:
“The age of these homes means they often haven’t been inspected or maintained over the years, which can mean costly elements like electrics and plumbing need replacing, and old structures need reinforcing. And the whole process is likely to take longer than you think,” she says.
But if you’re up for the challenge, the payoff can be well worth it; “There’s nothing quite like breathing new life into an older home that hasn’t been shown much love for years. And if done with some sensitivity and panache, you have the opportunity to create something truly special,” she says.
Here are Naughtin’s top three tips for success when renovating a heritage home:
1. Don’t copy the past
Special features such as ornate ceilings and leadlight windows may have been what drew you to your heritage home in the first place. But context is everything, says Naughtin, and if you’re extending, avoid the temptation to mimic them in the contemporary portion of the home.
“Replicating the past rarely works,” she says. “Instead, look to make the old and new parts read as two separate chapters that tell the story of your home’s evolution over time, with shared moments of materiality or form so they speak the same language.”
Any new addition should also be respectful of the role your abode plays within the neighbourhood. “Older homes often define their streetscape – something that a new addition should not disrupt. As such, it’s important that new extensions are recessive in scale, materiality and form,” she says.
When extending Turn House, a single-storey Victorian red-brick terrace in North Fitzroy, Victoria, Naughtin designed the rear addition to be modest in scale at just 45 square metres, with a contemporary form that follows the site’s boundary line and a parapet that aligns with the home’s existing gutter. Outside, she selected sleek black bricks that speak to the home’s original character, while clearly defining the meeting point between old and new.
Special features such as ornate ceilings and leadlight windows may have been what drew you to your heritage home in the first place. But context is everything, says Naughtin, and if you’re extending, avoid the temptation to mimic them in the contemporary portion of the home.
“Replicating the past rarely works,” she says. “Instead, look to make the old and new parts read as two separate chapters that tell the story of your home’s evolution over time, with shared moments of materiality or form so they speak the same language.”
Any new addition should also be respectful of the role your abode plays within the neighbourhood. “Older homes often define their streetscape – something that a new addition should not disrupt. As such, it’s important that new extensions are recessive in scale, materiality and form,” she says.
When extending Turn House, a single-storey Victorian red-brick terrace in North Fitzroy, Victoria, Naughtin designed the rear addition to be modest in scale at just 45 square metres, with a contemporary form that follows the site’s boundary line and a parapet that aligns with the home’s existing gutter. Outside, she selected sleek black bricks that speak to the home’s original character, while clearly defining the meeting point between old and new.
2. Create a dialogue between old and new
“You can create a common language between the original and new parts of your home by using features from the past to inspire contemporary design and material choices,” says Naughtin.
“Classic red brickwork on the front of your house, stained-glass windows, arched doorways, cast-iron scrollwork and decorative fireplaces can all be abstracted into appealing contemporary details that you can use throughout the new areas of your home to add depth and interest, while making a nod to the home’s history,” she says.
In Turn House, Naughtin carried the bricks through from the original part of the house to the interior of the new contemporary extension, but in a contrasting shade of cream. For a playful, modern twist, she then curved the kitchen wall.
Meanwhile, the heritage scrollwork on the home’s facade inspired the new addition’s exposed steel structure and steel windows and doors.
“You can create a common language between the original and new parts of your home by using features from the past to inspire contemporary design and material choices,” says Naughtin.
“Classic red brickwork on the front of your house, stained-glass windows, arched doorways, cast-iron scrollwork and decorative fireplaces can all be abstracted into appealing contemporary details that you can use throughout the new areas of your home to add depth and interest, while making a nod to the home’s history,” she says.
In Turn House, Naughtin carried the bricks through from the original part of the house to the interior of the new contemporary extension, but in a contrasting shade of cream. For a playful, modern twist, she then curved the kitchen wall.
Meanwhile, the heritage scrollwork on the home’s facade inspired the new addition’s exposed steel structure and steel windows and doors.
3. Make the transition memorable
Rather than try to minimise the moment when you step between the old and new parts of the house, make it something to remember, says Naughtin. “Nailing that transition is key. During the planning stages, consider how you move from one section of the house to the other, and look to make it a real ‘wow’ moment,” she says.
“In Turn House, we installed a glazed-steel pivot door between the cosy original interior and the new double-height, open-plan addition, while in the dining room, a brass strip cuts between the old timber flooring and the new concrete slab,” says Naughtin.
And there are plenty of other inventive ways you can create that wow moment. “Contrast decorative heritage cornices and architraves in the old part of your house with contemporary details such as square-set cornices and shadow lines on timber joinery; juxtapose colours and materials; or make a change in ceiling or floor height – the options are endless,” she says.
See more of this project
More: For more information and examples of Naughtin’s designs, visit her Houzz profile.
This story was written by the Houzz Sponsored Content team.
Rather than try to minimise the moment when you step between the old and new parts of the house, make it something to remember, says Naughtin. “Nailing that transition is key. During the planning stages, consider how you move from one section of the house to the other, and look to make it a real ‘wow’ moment,” she says.
“In Turn House, we installed a glazed-steel pivot door between the cosy original interior and the new double-height, open-plan addition, while in the dining room, a brass strip cuts between the old timber flooring and the new concrete slab,” says Naughtin.
And there are plenty of other inventive ways you can create that wow moment. “Contrast decorative heritage cornices and architraves in the old part of your house with contemporary details such as square-set cornices and shadow lines on timber joinery; juxtapose colours and materials; or make a change in ceiling or floor height – the options are endless,” she says.
See more of this project
More: For more information and examples of Naughtin’s designs, visit her Houzz profile.
This story was written by the Houzz Sponsored Content team.
Rebecca and her team have built up a reputation for the residential work they have produced in the years since... Read More
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