Periscope House draws light into a young family’s home, adding thoughtful solutions and flexible spaces to 1950s Art Deco foundations. Our clients engaged us to undertake a considered extension to their character-rich home in Malvern East. They wanted to celebrate their home’s history while adapting it to the needs of their family, and future-proofing it for decades to come. The extension’s form meets with and continues the existing roofline, politely emerging at the rear of the house. The tones of the original white render and red brick are reflected in the extension, informing its white Colorbond exterior and selective pops of red throughout. Inside, the original home’s layout has been reimagined to better suit a growing family. Once closed-in formal dining and lounge rooms were converted into children’s bedrooms, supplementing the main bedroom and a versatile fourth room. Grouping these rooms together has created a subtle definition of zones: private spaces are nestled to the front, while the rear extension opens up to shared living areas. A tailored response to the site, the extension’s ground floor addresses the western back garden, and first floor (AKA the periscope) faces the northern sun. Sitting above the open plan living areas, the periscope is a mezzanine that nimbly sidesteps the harsh afternoon light synonymous with a western facing back yard. It features a solid wall to the west and a glass wall to the north, emulating the rotation of a periscope to draw gentle light into the extension. Beneath the mezzanine, the kitchen, dining, living and outdoor spaces effortlessly overlap. Also accessible via an informal back door for friends and family, this generous communal area provides our clients with the functionality, spatial cohesion and connection to the outdoors they were missing. Melding modern and heritage elements, Periscope House honours the history of our clients’ home while creating light-filled shared spaces – all through a periscopic lens that opens the home to the garden.

Port Melbourne Residence

MR.MITCHELL

Design ideas for a large contemporary open concept family room in Melbourne with a home bar, brown walls, medium hardwood floors, a hanging fireplace, a stone fireplace surround, a built-in media wall and wood walls.

Eagle Mountain Lake House

Urbanology Designs

Dark Plank Wall with Floating Media Center
Photo of a mid-sized contemporary enclosed family room in Dallas with a wall-mounted tv, grey walls, brown floor and planked wall panelling.

Waplington Games Room

Revival by Design

Above a newly constructed triple garage, we created a multifunctional space for a family that likes to entertain, but also spend time together watching movies, sports and playing pool. Having worked with our clients before on a previous project, they gave us free rein to create something they couldn’t have thought of themselves. We planned the space to feel as open as possible, whilst still having individual areas with their own identity and purpose. As this space was going to be predominantly used for entertaining in the evening or for movie watching, we made the room dark and enveloping using Farrow and Ball Studio Green in dead flat finish, wonderful for absorbing light. We then set about creating a lighting plan that offers multiple options for both ambience and practicality, so no matter what the occasion there was a lighting setting to suit. The bar, banquette seat and sofa were all bespoke, specifically designed for this space, which allowed us to have the exact size and cover we wanted. We also designed a restroom and shower room, so that in the future should this space become a guest suite, it already has everything you need. Given that this space was completed just before Christmas, we feel sure it would have been thoroughly enjoyed for entertaining.

Contemporary & Tonal

Sandra Britt Interiors

Contemporary family room in Miami with porcelain floors, a built-in media wall, beige floor and wood walls.

Seattle Boat House

User

A uniform and cohesive look adds simplicity to the overall aesthetic, supporting the minimalist design of this boathouse. The A5s is Glo’s slimmest profile, allowing for more glass, less frame, and wider sightlines. The concealed hinge creates a clean interior look while also providing a more energy-efficient air-tight window. The increased performance is also seen in the triple pane glazing used in both series. The windows and doors alike provide a larger continuous thermal break, multiple air seals, high-performance spacers, Low-E glass, and argon filled glazing, with U-values as low as 0.20. Energy efficiency and effortless minimalism create a breathtaking Scandinavian-style remodel.

Montage Penthouse

Alder and Tweed Design Co.

This family room features a mix of bold patterns and colors. The combination of its colors, materials, and finishes makes this space highly luxurious and elevated.

Charleston Colorful & Contemporary Home Remodel

Aiden Fabrics

Part of the renovation project included opening the large wall to the Music Room which is opposite the dining room. In there we married a gorgeous teal grasscloth wallpaper, also from Phillip Jeffries, with fabric for drapery & shades in Covington’s Abelia Garden which is a stunning embroidered floral on a navy background. Photos by Ebony Ellis for Charleston Home + Design Magazine

Modern Family Room with Entertainment Center

ZeroEnergy Design

Photo of a large contemporary family room in Other with white walls, light hardwood floors, a corner fireplace, a concrete fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv, beige floor, vaulted and wood walls.

Memorial Transitional

Frankel Design Build

Inspiration for an expansive contemporary open concept family room in Houston with white walls, light hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv, exposed beam and panelled walls.

Auburn + Grace

Clark + Aldine

Inspiration for a contemporary open concept family room in Detroit with multi-coloured walls, light hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a wood fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv, brown floor and brick walls.

Мансарда в реечку (Москва - Переделка.ТВ "Дачный ответ")

Ambient Lounge

Бескаркасное кресло Acoustic Sofa™ в цвете Eco Weave из прочной и износостойкой ткани отлично подойдет для кинопросмотров. С одной стороны, оно довольно мягкое, но с другой – благодаря структуре держит форму.

English Hill Transitional

Garret Cord Werner Architects & Interior Designers

Design ideas for a contemporary family room in Seattle with a standard fireplace, a wall-mounted tv, vaulted and decorative wall panelling.

Family Room

Angela Reynolds Designs

Living Proof Photograpy
Large contemporary open concept family room in Miami with beige walls, dark hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv, brown floor, exposed beam and wallpaper.

T House

Studio Course

Family Room
Photo of a contemporary family room in Pune with grey walls, medium hardwood floors, brown floor and wood walls.

Glimmers of Gold l Renovation

My House Design/Build/Team

In addition to the white kitchen renovations, the living room got a much needed update too. The original high ceilings were so high they were unusable for decor or artwork, and a fireplace was mostly unused. We installed a large dark grey paneled accent wall (to match the new accent wall in the new formal dining room nearby), to make better use of the space in a stylish, artful way. In the middle of the room, a stunning minimalist hanging chandelier adds a pop of gold and elegance to the new space.

Plentiful Patterns

Delbert Adams Construction Group

Contemporary family room with tall, exposed wood beam ceilings, built-in open wall cabinetry, ribbon fireplace below wall-mounted television, and decorative metal chandelier (Angled)

Boerum Hill Townhouse

KSB Build

Bleached oak built-in with leather pulls.
Photo of a small contemporary open concept family room in New York with grey walls, light hardwood floors, a built-in media wall, beige floor and wallpaper.