Elegant Simplicity

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Gallery: St Ives Chase – Complete Home Renovation, Extension and New Floor Addition

Main Gallery

A short story of this project

St Ives Chase home renovation second storey addition

This small 1960’s 4-bedroom brick veneer cottage nestled on the edge of the bush was in dire need of being extended and updated to meet the needs of a family with 2 young children.

They primarily wanted a “family home” with a sense of spaciousness and warmth, suitable for entertaining and accommodating overseas guests on a regular basis. With both parents having demanding work commitments, the house needed to be a ‘place of harmony’, easy to maintain, and encourage relaxation as the family watch the sunsets.

The house was dark and cold as it had no direct sunlight from the north and had poor cross-ventilation.

The views to the bush are south-facing to the rear. The property has the highest possible bushfire rating (BAL-Flame Zone).

The design solution was to:

  • Extend the ground floor to include kitchen, living and dining areas
  • Design a new first floor with bedrooms above the ground floor extension
  • Design the roof and windows to bring direct sunlight to the centre of the house and create a natural ventilation system to reduce energy consumption, resulting in a responsible, sustainable solution
  • Create large sliding doors and windows to give access to new decks orientated to the bush views, whilst being mindful of the specialised construction requirements for BAL-Flame Zone

In the client’s words they have “a stunning home and couldn’t be happier with the architectural design”.

The new design is sympathetic to the original cottage, and yet is contemporary in form and materials, combining the needs for both open-plan spaces and privacy within designated areas.

It breathes new life into the home and is now a restful retreat.

The direct sunlight ensures that the areas for the family have a warm, spacious, welcoming feel and the family are able to enjoy the bush views from every room.

Photo Gallery

St Ives Before Renovation
Before — a small 1960s brick veneer cottage missing out on the bush views.
St Ives 2 Home Renovation
The use of multiple single-plane roofs is reminiscent of traditional pitched roofs, resulting in a design which is harmonious with the original portion of the house, and yet has a distinctly modern style.
St Ives Living Area
The timber theme is restrained but varied in colour and pattern. A simple, but important, aspect of the floor plan is the direct access from the Entry to the Kitchen and Family Room.
St Ives Stairs Second Storey
The new Family Room is warm, open and light-filled. The open gallery on the first floor encourages communication within the home.
St Ives Kitchen Living Area
The lower ceiling in the Kitchen gives this space a sense of containment and separation from the Family Room.
St Ives Second Storey
The high-level timber ceiling and north-facing high windows combine to make the home feel warm and spacious and permit views to the kitchen and outdoor deck.
St Ives Dining
An intimate Dining Room with a large window framing the views to the bush. The ability of the space to focus on a serene outlook encourages relaxation when dining.
St Ives Kitchen
The Kitchen, with low level benches only, emphasises the sense of space and provides a clean, simple space for cooking and entertaining.
St Ives Kitchen Stocks Area
A generous pantry is easy to organise and helps day-to-day life, since there is plenty of storage and therefore everything has its own place.
St Ives Master Bedroom Bathroom
An Ensuite and adjacent Master Bedroom both have access to a private balcony which provides a haven for relaxation and conversation.
St Ives Stairs Natural Lighting
An open-style stair in the Entry ensures the area is always well-lit and provides a sense of spaciousness within the hallway.
St Ives Bedroom
The expansive views from all bedrooms are focused to the bush, the result being a “feeling of living in the tree-tops”.
St Ives Home Renovation Exterior
A home for family and friends. Modern contemporary design meeting all the requirements for a young family, now and into the future.

Words from our client

Innovative, highly professional and sympathetic

Martin was a referral to us and we worked with him to remodel our home and add a new floor extension.  We were immediately impressed by our first meeting, Martin was professional, had some fantastic ideas and very knowledgeable of our area and the restrictions we had as we lived in a flame zone.  We knew what we wanted to suit the needs of our young family but Martin advised us on how we could transcend our house design to meet our families needs as our family grew up. Martin worked with the council and other contractors so that our planning application was submitted and the result was stress free, seamless, with no changes.

This was our first ever experience of remodelling and Martin was patient with all our novice questions.

We now have a stunning home and we couldn’t be happier with the architectural design.

Martin’s approach is innovative, highly professional and sympathetic and we have recommended Martin to anyone who asks us!

David & Pauline