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We live in an age where property development often means a boots and-all approach to get the most out of a site, so it's refreshing to find people who go out of their way to tread softly.
The owners of this mid 1950s Melbourne house have done just that, rejecting the advice of architects to demolish and rebuild and turning instead to Hecker Phelan Interior Designers, whose overriding approach has also been respectful -- to both the building and its original architect.
As Paul Hecker says: "We were very conscious of making sure we didn't lose sight of the architecture. You can go to town on these sorts of houses and rip the guts out of them, completely changing the way they work, but then why buy the house in the first place?"
To ensure mistakes weren't made in the headlong rush to renovate their home, the owners made only two changes after moving in: they removed the carpets to reveal the floorboards and painted all the rooms white.
After a couple of years in the residence, they knew the 3 storey house worked well with its separate zones: one for living; one for sleeping; and another for recreation.
Douglas Alexander, the architect in the 1950's, laid it out so well, all the rooms work where they are, and the placement of patios, looking out on the trees, is fantastic.
The house sits on a block that runs east-west, sloping away steeply from the street.
Alexander originally designed a rectangular house to run along the southern side of the block with large areas of glass to the north to take full advantage of the sun.
About six years after it was built, a small, almost square wing was added to the eastern end, turning the house's oblong footprint into an L-shape. The new wing comprised a sunroom upstairs and a master bedroom and ensuite below.
Meanwhile, Hecker Phelan went about refurbishing the main rooms and opening up the house to improve the flow and sense of light and air.
Walls separating the street-level dining room, kitchen and sunroom were demolished, creating one large, breezy kitchen and dining space. Up a short flight of stairs, the living room was left intact, with the exception ora wall that was lined in timber panels to match one near the entry.
On the middle level, a row of utility rooms (laundry, WC and shower) on one side of the hall was removed, making way for a built-in desk to serve as a communal study area opposite the children's bedrooms. At the end of the hallway, the original main bathroom was enlarged and brightened with the addition of a slot window in one wall.
And, finally, a wall separating the master bedroom from its ensuite was removed and both rooms were then refurbished, resulting in something akin to a luxurious hotel suite.
A ceiling-to-floor white curtain separates the sleeping and bathing zones. When drawn back, it allows a view out to the pool from the freestanding bath, making this one of the owner's favourite parts of the house.
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