An Open Embrace – Fireside House by Breathe

Combining the existing narrative of a heritage home with a newly formed extrusion for the family to gather within, Fireside House provides the ideal expression of coming together. Breathe proposes generous and enveloping spaces that are bound by a shared warmth and natural illumination connecting to the surrounding garden.

Neatly located amongst other similar-era timber cottages in Northcote, Fireside House is an experiment of modest proportions. Wanting to retain the original home and its ingrained heritage, the proposal sees an expansion of the overall volume to allow for its occupants and their changing needs over time, giving them room to move. Inspired by its namesake, the house and its addition are developed from the notion of coming together, of gathering and all the associated storytelling and memory-making that occurs around the campfire. In this case, the pizza oven takes the role of the fire source as a nod to the famed Italian dish. Breathe draws on the personalities of the home’s occupants, their own definition of home and togetherness, to create a place that works uniquely for them.

Inspired by its namesake, the house and its addition are developed from the notion of coming together, of gathering and all the associated storytelling and memory-making that occurs around the campfire.

The overall silhouette of the original home is extruded backwards, moving the overall footprint of the home deeper into the site as a gesture that pulls people together. The formal expression retains a connection to the home’s origins and contains the view from the streetscape. Maintaining character was key, while opening and allowing movement and a better sense of connection was integral to how the family use the home. Built by Never Stop Group with landscape by Ann Morgan-Payler Design in collaboration with Breathe, the establishing of a connection between inside and out required an integrated approach. As the large open space to the rear provides a pull due to its function, the openings and natural light also add to the comfort when inside.

Elements of the original Edwardian style are reinterpreted in the new, with crafted and handmade features carried through into the new and out into the landscaped areas. The exterior pergola also follows the same formal outline, as a framework around the outdoor oven and dining area. A warming timber interior sleeves the new addition and further reinforces the idea of the home as a place of shelter, cocooning its residents. The use of timber also connects to the original timber weatherboard cladding of the home, reinterpreted in a contemporary setting. While the new addition adds a combined living, dining and kitchen area, it also allows for nuanced other nuanced areas for each of the family members.

A warming timber interior sleeves the new addition and further reinforces the idea of the home as a place of shelter, cocooning its residents.

Through careful customisation, Fireside House opens and caters to its owners, while retaining an existing charm through its scale and proportions. Breathe extends on one legacy, in the process making way for the creation of a new.