A Designer + Builder’s 1950s Warrandyte Home Renovation

Alexandra Apostolids and Pierre Seale experienced a number of important capabilities they desired in their 1st household house. This 1950s dwelling in Warrandyte (a bush-like suburb 24 kilometres north-east of Melbourne’s CBD) was the only home that ticked each individual single box.

‘We have always liked mid-century interiors and architecture,’ claims Alexandra. ‘This household primarily presented so lots of of the vital features that we adore from this period… total-peak cedar awning home windows letting purely natural gentle in abundance an L-shaped floor system wrapping all over the home that embraces greenery and of course the timber-lined board ceilings with exposed beams.’ 

Pierre is a builder, and through his business Lifetime Constructing and Style, he usually collaborates on style initiatives with Alexandra, so it seemed inescapable that the pair would incorporate their abilities to change this residence! Their target was to greatly enhance the home’s first elegance, just before adding modern information. ‘Any possibility there was to embrace purely natural products and elements in their purest variety, we took it,’ states Alexandra. 

The couple to start with pared back again the interiors to take away pokey cabinets and reduced doors, in favour of greater openings and cleaner lines. ‘We expanded on room and movement by opening up the eating and dwelling area, and removing a wall that divided these two spaces’ points out Alexandra. 

Two new sets of bi-fold doorways ended up mounted all over the out of doors spot, replacing present set window and doorways that weren’t doing the job to their potential. ‘Having them open expands the residing area immensely… our floor system doubles when they bi-fold doors are opened’ says Alexandra. 

Somewhere else, authentic cedar home windows have been sanded back again to display their purely natural vein, although Baltic timber floorboards have been restored to their authentic unstained colour and matte end.

With the bones of the home now restored, Alexandra and Pierre commenced to increase modern-day comforts. ‘There was no insulation in any of the roof, partitions, or flooring, which we rectified, alongside with the addition of underfloor heating in all loos, and zoned heating and cooling’ claims Alexandra, adding ‘a distant opening skylight highlighting the canopies of our river gums, and supporting to passively amazing the home was a excellent decision’.

The couple ‘couldn’t fault’ the authentic kitchen layout, but the substance palette known as for a sizeable update. New American oak cabinetry was put in, complementing stunning benchtops and a splashback in ‘golden spider’ marble. ‘It has the most lovely peachy golden veins and body shifting by it – a match made for the encompassing timber and heat gentle that glides through this household room,’ says Alexandra.

The concluded residence is breezy in summer months and cosy in winter, surrounded by the family’s yard. ‘We dwell so happily below,’ Alexandra claims.