A Eclectic and Open Home in Sydney

This magnificent home in Sydney, Australia, was not always so receptive and light-filled. These rooms were initially small and dim, due to the orientation of the house on the website. For the homeowners, a couple with two kids and a puppy, natural light has been the priority during the design of this new wing. Thus Sam Crawford Architects added a central courtyard that attached the first arrangement with the new wing, and added high windows to let in the light.

The clients also wanted their home to reflect their characters as well as their incredible art collection. “This project is a superb illustration of how committed and engaged clients and challenging site limitations can make for a more wealthy and bespoke layout,” says Crawford Architects Senior Designer Karen Erdos.

Sam Crawford Architects

The largest room in the new wing serves two functions — it’s a music room where the kids can practice piano, and a dining room with access to the open kitchen. Like the majority of the main rooms in this house, this space is open and light, with numerous doors that offer access to the outside.

The beautifully crafted dining table and seats are heirlooms from Scandinavia. “They’ve a great painting and item collection,” states Erdos. “They have their own special style, which very considerably contributed to the craft and industrial aesthetic of the construction.”

Pendants: Great Dane Furniture

Sam Crawford Architects

This slick library-style bookshelf was designed to put away books and art objects (the owners had an extensive ceramic collection to display) and also to accentuate the height of the 14.5 foot ceilings.

The ceiling is lined with recycled timber beams saved during the demolition procedure. They’re among the many sustainable features of this special house.

Sam Crawford Architects

This wide shot of this space shows how nicely the brand new wing blends the inside and the outdoors. The home has a rear garden and central courtyard. Floors throughout is polished concrete, and the interior walls are lined with recycled brick.

Sam Crawford Architects

The clients wanted each space in the new wing to perform multiple functions. This large room has areas for playing and listening to music, dining, and even a lounge area for reading. “They really wanted to blur the distinctions between space uses,” says Crawford.

Sam Crawford Architects

Some of the clients’ precious assortment of Scandinavian hand-painted ceramic tiles have been used for the joinery work at the house, and they inspired the architects to create a large, laser-cut wood plank at a pattern borrowed in the tiles.

Sam Crawford Architects

The laser-cut panel has been installed as a visual divider between the kitchen and the great room. The kitchen also has sliding windows using a seat that opens into the backyard.

Sam Crawford Architects

The central courtyard plays a major part in blurring the line between inside and outside. Most of the windows in these rooms can be opened and have a low bench seat for appreciating the space in between them both. “We did wind up limiting the extent that all the doors and windows may open up,” states Erdos. “This provides some level of distinction between the inside and the exterior.”

Sam Crawford Architects

Recycled brick has been used extensively inside and out, for both environmental and aesthetic reasons. Lightweight steel-framed doors and windows have been painted black to emphasize the tall brick walls in the dining room and the courtyard.

Sam Crawford Architects

“Focusing on sustainability caused a layout that sits on a clear continuum in our work,” states Erdos. “We pushed for maximum sustainable relaxation with minimal continuing energy use.”

Sam Crawford Architects

The architects installed the concrete slab flooring and the opposite brick veneer wall with sustainability in mind. The central courtyard offers winter sunlight to the south-facing dwelling areas, which warms the concrete flooring.

Sam Crawford Architects

Evacuated solar tubes provide underfloor heating into the bedroom, bathroom and living areas. “It has quite an industrial sense,” states Erdos,”but it’s heat and great attention to detail. There are many small and delightful elements within the project that show themselves after spending time there.”

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