Project: 10 times the house
Architects: Timmins + Whyte Architects
location: Abbotsford, Melbourne, Victoria Australia
general: 2020
photos by: Peter Bennetts
10 Times the House by Timmins + Whyte Architects
Timmins + Whyte Architects designed the renovation of a single storey cottage located in Abbotsford, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia. The reconstructed dwelling takes on a contemporary look with an emphasis on natural lighting.
The original one-story Edwardian house was dark and lacked contact with the outside. We used 10 folds in the ceiling to draw light along the long, skinny house and site. Pleats reduce the bulk of the eastern neighbor and rise to the large two-storey western neighbor. The house unassumingly deals with the street with a contemporary adaptation of the Edwardian cottage and the two storey portion of the house is set back from the street and hides the bedroom volume behind.
The original reconstructed room has been painted white in keeping with the original cottage on the site and neighboring homes. The ‘new’ two-storey parts of the house were boarded and painted green, a color matching the leaves of the Australian bush. We chose wooden windows and doors because they are parts of the building that our customers interact with the most and wood adds warmth to the palette.
Throughout, the space creates its own sense of expansion and compression – from the intimate dining to the soaring ceiling suspended above a wall of carefully selected artwork. A rearrangement of spaces from the original house means the kitchen and dining are now open to their seasonal edible garden, where the neighbors’ homes are not visible but their mature trees, including palms and jacarandas, become part of the seasonal experience for our customers. True to our design philosophy, this home is well thought out and crafted, improving the living for our customers tenfold.” The construction is lightweight stud frame and ceiling beams covered in painted horizontal boards. Ceilings are clad in colorbond metal.
On the ground floor, the one-story front room serves as a living room, study, and bedroom for guests on functions. Laundry and bathroom are central to the plan and a small service patio allows for views and air from the shower. The garden and north light are accessed directly from the kitchen and dining space. The opportunity to relax in this space is also achieved with a cushioned L-shaped sofa and banquette seat. Upstairs is a second bedroom, two bedrooms for our client and their teenage daughter.
The home uses passive cooling and ventilation to reduce the use of air conditioning and artificial light and the client told us they couldn’t be happier with how it works. The client has gladly invested in solar panels and water tanks to irrigate the gardens as well as the opportunity to upgrade the wall and roof insulation keeping the house at a fairly constant temperature throughout all seasons. Openable skylights above the stairs vent hot air in the summer and the upper bedrooms benefit from the rising heat from the basement in the winter.
—Timmins + Whyte Architects
