Remember when Archicentre used to have those great makeover concept articles in The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald? You know, how to transform a horror-show into a well-designed haven? Well, we loved them so much (and our readers told us they wanted more floorplans) that we brought them back with a twist. We've also added some of the concepts that are being designed by Archicentre's Bushfire Design Concept service.
Middle Park Makeover
Archicentre architect Christopher McSteen was selected to develop the following brief for the potential buyers of a Melbourne home.
“The home is a traditional single-storey, two-bedroom Victorian weatherboard cottage on a wide, open, tram-lined street,” says Christopher. “A two storey solid brick extension, added in the 1980’s, comprises a spiral staircase and two very large bedrooms at the rear. The family hopes to blend the indoor/outdoor area, add an en suite downstairs, a loo upstairs, and strike a fine balance between Victorian and modern style.”
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Ventor Makeover
The site
The site is a vacant block in a small street close to the beach. Most of the blocks in the street have been built on. The rear of the block abuts a foreshore reserve and faces north. There is a slight slope towards the rear. The soil conditions appear to be sandy.
A test will be required to establish the exact conditions.
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Bondi Makeover
The brief
The existing three-bedroom house is semi-detached and has an old style rear -with the service rooms currently positioned between the living areas and the back courtyard. Archicentre, the home advisory service of the Australian Institute of Architects, asked Roger Barrett of Barrett Pinet Architecture to open up the home to the rear and maximise the relationship between indoors and out.
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Campbell Makeover - Canberra
The property
This featured property is in Campbell – a suburb in Canberra’s inner north, close to Civic, Lake Burley Griffin, the Defence Force offices, Canberra airport and the main arterial roads to the coast, Sydney and the Snowy Mountains.
Architect Graham Legge says the existing two-bedroom house is of brick veneer construction with polished timber floor boards, timber framed windows and timber doors. It is north-facing with large windows and glass doors to the living room.
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Fifties Weatherboard Makeover
Houses were different in the fifties. While homes were built to last, the design was often not as well thought through as it could have been. For this couple - whose toilet can be seen from the front door - their architect needed to come up with a well-designed makeover.
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Sundial in Brunswick
Archicentre architect Michael Ellis has seized on the potential of this Brunswick property to create a striking, sun-filled modern extension.
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First Homebuyers Turn First-time Renovators
Steve and Tammy bought their first home in a peaceful, family orientated area in the Victorian suburb of Burwood. The couple was excited when they found a 1950’s art deco-style brick veneer with a triple-fronted façade well within their budget. Located on a good sized block, light, airy with a backyard and views of the Dandenongs, it ticked all the boxes.
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Now that the Look Home Design Annual is a once-a-year bumper issue, we don't want to have to wait a whole twelve months before we share some of the new stories that come our way. We're always hearing stories about interesting renovations, new homes and innovative products and you can read the latest articles and hear the every-now-and-again podcast on those here.
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