Our clients purchased a fabulous but weary mid century home designed in 1968 by architect Harry Ernest. They had been hunting for a heritage home to nurture into their long term home and they were excited by the potential of the single level brick house located in Brighton, a beachside suburb of Melbourne, with its floor plan wrapped around a sunny north-facing courtyard.
Our clients wanted their renovated home to feel comfortable, light and warm. It was to feel smart, modern, easy and open with a friendly and welcoming atmosphere, with little surprises here and there. It would be unpretentious. Most of all, the home would be perfect for how they wanted to live: they are both typically homebodies who love a comfy sofa in a warm spot for reading, watching TV, listening to music and knitting. They love their Sunday lie-ins reading the papers, looking out to a garden with sunlight streaming in. They are art-lovers of all kinds, they adore the outdoors and enjoy cooking and entertaining.
The early design stages revealed that the existing house was almost the right size and only small additions were required to achieve the spaces our clients needed. As such, the architectural concept was to retain and restore the original house with the interventions contained to small internal rearrangements, new high performance double glazing, some new windows and glazed doors to connect to the garden spaces, and new skylights to bring daylight into the darker spaces of the home. In addition, a key priority was to vastly improve the longevity and thermal performance of the home with carefully selected replacement of existing built fabric and adding high performing insulation solutions. A large solar array was added along with all electric heating, cooling and hot water, all combining to archive a 6-star rating.
The Bower team was fortunate to chat with the now elderly original architect Harry Ernest. He had fond memories of details such as carefully selecting the brown smooth bricks and their Flemish bond, the low slung and restrained expression from the street and the focus around the courtyard. He was excited by the light-touch approach Bower and the owners wished to take, and that the house was being given new love.
