Reaching even higher.

8 years ago I had drawn up plans for this 2 storey home in Applecross, the original design having been sketched out by another designer. Both prior to and during construction the owner had considered a 3rd storey to capture the elevated views down the road to the river and so I had already prepared sketch plans but they remained an idea.  Almost a decade later and we are back to consider again the opportunity for greater views to be had by going up another floor.  

The design continues the existing unique composite style and adding an additional feature parapet facing the side street to break up the repetition of windows.  Taking the master suite to the top floor with a sumptuous ensuite as well as a large open lounge area and a small study, the design fills up all the available space on this small 200m2 lot when allowing for setbacks.

Grouped Dwellings with a touch of nostalgia

Here's a new grouped dwelling development to be built in Mount Nasura just about ready to be submitted for planning approval.  Developed for a client with a taste for a bit of yesteryear but the comfort and convenience of tomorrow, these three dwellings will overlook a quiet highway road from it's elevated position. The first two homes are 3 bed 2 bath but the 3rd home will serve as their family home and is a 2 storey 5 bed 2 bath home with extra living area upstairs enjoying an elevated view across largely low developed country side.

 This project certainly came with challenges.  I took over from a failed attempt at a planning application and started with a full investigation of the property restrictions.   A sewer / drainage easement along one boundary and a land resumption easement along another took a significant chunk of the property however a planning policy allowed an upgrade of the density coding to a higher number to allow the 3 homes to occupy the reduced area.

The client did want red brick federation style but the taller 2c cream blocks do give an economic edge that is important to make the project viable so I found some inspiring images of 'period' inspired homes to give a new direction and we are all happy with the result.

  With a corner lot there is an expectation of a 'face' to the secondary street however in this case the easement prevented any access (being that it is a highway). But the northern direction enjoyed a wide verge and a wonderful outlook over larger lot properties with very low density development such that the homes can't even be seen amongst the trees and bush.  This gives an opportunity to use a low fence to maintain the same amount of privacy because you are elevated above the road and yet allowing an outlook from inside the property, in this case being the living areas.

Having an outlook north facing, it gives good opportunity to position the living areas to enjoy winter sunshine.    

With plenty of forward consultation with the council I hope that this time we should gain planning approval promptly and the owner should be able to move on with the building application and construction. 

 

 

 

Raising the Roof for Room

This design began as a standard Amano Home that I also designed with the request to put a loft above.  The home overlooks large well-manicured parkland and also enjoys glimpses to the ocean so it was worth the extra to raise the roof.  With a steeper angle to the roof providing enough room without adding any wall height (critical to satisfying tough regulations on wall heights to boundary setbacks and also keep the budget trim) the resulting home makes quite a statement to the street.  With it's already raised ground level above the footpath, together with the additional height it becomes a landmark.

The original home was designed for views and with the garage accessed from a street behind and thus not taking up any street scape it is perfect to take the best advantage of a great outlook.

Seen here the home is near to completion by custom home builder Amano Homes.

The almost completed home.

Clubhouse Proposal

This project was a quick schematic design for the purposes of exploring a new clubhouse in a new location so the parameters were relatively loose but hopefully it will turn into a real project down the track.

Most of the parking is designed to be at the rear allowing only a few visitor parking bays at the front.  Separate access to offices that can be rented out to help pay for the facility

Luxurious Family Living in Style

A new family home to be built within an older suburb replacing an older post war service home. 

The home boasts the full accommodation required in a well appointed family home with 4 bedrooms plus study with bathroom and luxurious ensuite with free-standing oval bath.  A large family living area combined with a dining area are overlooked by a well appointed sumptuous kitchen with a pantry the size of a small warehouse. Bi-fold servery window panels from the kitchen open up to serve the large Alfresco-outdoor lounge area with a lovely northern aspect.  A Media room off the entry with coffered ceiling allows the full movie atmosphere and an additional Activity room surrounded by the minor bedrooms allows a kids games / play area that is close enough for supervision but separate enough to contain the noise.  This room also exits onto the Alfresco area.

The block is a triangular shape which can be difficult except this one is very wide at the front, wide enough to add a secure parking bay off to one side for another vehicle.  The wide house and having to accommodate the receding side boundary made the overall roof shape a bit of a challenge in presenting to the street. The forward master suite section became disconnected and awkward but working with additional structures and shapes along the front overcame this and I think became quite pleasing and impressive.

 A third garage gives a private access to an ancillary dwelling at the rear of the lot with it's own private external passage alongside the new home so the two occupants can live in separate private non-conflicting spaces.

You can see from the above that the client has good strong opinions and has stepped out of the typical current scheme, returning to the older 1c bricks but in the very new modern colours. As a result the home looks more individual and customised.  The addition of a front fence increases the sophistication as well as added security.  

Here is my first attempt at a colour / material scheme. 

You can see that I had gone with contemporary colours of warm browns and crisp whites against natural limestone.  Which one do you prefer?  It's amazing how colours change the perception and feel of a home and when you build a customized home you can make all the decisions for yourself.

Designed for Living

Another Amano Home.

The original concept.

This is an exciting split level home designed to elevate living areas above the street where the owners intend to sit out and enjoy the view over the heavily tree'd neighbourhood. Because of the planting density of the well established older area, the outlook is almost like looking out over bushland because the houses almost disappear.  An elevated home office above the garage allows the owner to enjoy the outlook all day as well as keep clients visits separate from the private home and also allows maximum advantage of the views because the garage would otherwise occupy the space. The home has 3 large bedrooms including a sumptuous master suite with ensuite and walk in robe that enjoys the rear garden, a large open living dining area with overlooking kitchen and private scullery and rear alfresco and a tucked away cinema room. The double garage also includes an additional den area for storage or play.

The clients wanted a home that captured exciting elements of the post art deco 50's when enthusiasm was booming and design was adventurous.

A dramatic rear courtyard for outdoor dining allows plenty of warm winter sunshine in mid-winter.

Double the delight!

A new double storey well appointed home to be built privately.  Enjoying plenty of space on a large lot this well appointed home includes 4 bedroom 3 bathroom with study and media room.

Preserving our Heritage - Meeting our Expectations

It's enjoyable to work on an older home with the character of yesteryear.  Whilst my own taste is for modern minimalism, as a designer I can appreciate the charm and grace of periods of architecture and style of times past.  
Retaining that character whilst upgrading the home to meet modern expectations requires deft skill and integrity.  

This project involved adding a double carport and ensuite with a new entrance statement to highlight the new front door position as well as extensive kitchen living areas to the rear which enjoy an elevated view over the tree lined suburb because of the dramatic fall of the land.  Additionally some upgrade work to the existing undericroft den at the rear and an inside stairway to enable easy access makes the space much more usable for current needs as a recording studio and general entertaining room.

Squeezed to Please

Amano Homes is preparing to build this large family home in what is a very tight space.  

The home is to be built for the owner of the adjoining house and has a parapet wall for much of it's side boundary being built up against the existing home and as close to all other boundaries and on as much of the site as possible.  Boasting 5 large bedrooms (including a downstairs guest) with 3 bathrooms, an open study and activity upstairs and a separate theatre and open living area downstairs around the alfresco, the home certainly makes maximum use of the available space.

Completed home making a splash.

Well appointed Kitchen

A large kitchen overlooks the living and dining spaces that overflow out to the alfresco area.

Multiple Dwellings

Amano Homes have quickly moved on the new trend appearing in the suburbs for apartment living.  Once confined to the inner city precincts, changing demographics, high pricing, smaller family units and singles living by themselves have brought about a demand for lower cost dwellings and building one above the other makes better use of the available space. This project consisting of 7 one and two bedroom dwellings with 1 car bay each. Security gates and shared recreation facilities bring a sense of protection and community to the development.

Here's an earlier scheme with a slightly different street view.

Little bit of Luxury

An Amano Homes client has create a niche property at the rear of an existing home on a corner property and is looking forward to building an executive residence on this small lot.  Custom designed to make the most of the limited space it manages to provide a comfortable family home. A good size casual living & dining area with large kitchen fill out the ground floor together with a study (or guest bed) and separate theatre room with double garage with internal access . A large entry foyer leads to a sweeping stair case and on up to an open sitting area that leads out to the large front balcony.  The home boasts 5 double size bedrooms all with good size full height robes, the master hiding a luxury ensuite and large dressing room.  Overall a compact design means a good economical price for what is a well appointed home.  After all that, there is still a good size outdoor living space to the rear including a covered alfresco dining area.