Major home extension, Balmain

Our brief was to create a forever home behind the heritage-listed facade of a small cottage. The front was not modified in any way but behind it, what had originally been a tiny two-bedroom, single-bathroom structure was completely demolished and rebuilt. Our challenge was to give the client a totally new home which acknowledged the heritage of the house and made the most of a stunning outlook to Cockatoo island and beyond.

The new construction was over three levels. The top floor comprised the main area with kitchen, dining and lounge; the middle floor featured three bedrooms and two bathrooms, one an ensuite to the master. The ground floor was an additional lounge with a kitchenette to make it more self-contained.
 
It was important to the client to maximise natural light on the top floor, achieved by generous skylights over the kitchen and lounge. On the middle floor, bifold doors open from the master suite to a back garden, creating a beautiful private sanctuary and letting in more natural light.

Curves give depth and warmth to the open space of the top floor. They are echoed in the kitchen ceiling, the handcrafted timber kitchen bench, the open curved shelf and at the top and bottom of the stairs. Other details include a variety of textures, for example, the cladded fireplace wall; the varied colours throughout; and the flow of the top floor area. Lighting was integrated into many of the walls and the handcrafted stair rail.