A House to Gather
Crafted from a Federation home, A House to Gather enjoys a renewed relationship with its natural surroundings. Championing a sustainable design approach, Sibling Architecture achieved a lightness in the renovated dwelling.
Located in the Melbourne suburb of Thornbury, where the semi-detached home reflects inner-city life, A House to Gather fits seamlessly into the built landscape. Its original structure, however, made poor use of its narrow site, enclosing only two bedrooms in its series of disjointed interiors, all of which were disconnected from the garden. As a result, the renovation brief called for another bedroom and bathroom as well as increased access to natural light. It also prioritised the client’s love of entertaining. “The biggest challenges related to the site constraints,” says Nicholas Braun, director at Sibling Architecture. “There are neighbouring properties on either side, so we had to ensure that the project would not negatively impact them. We had to enhance the functionality of each space and use a relatively modest budget to create places for people to come together.” In A House to Gather, a compact interior prompted innovation; the inner-city home is reframed as a lesson in sustainability, which is especially relevant in the context of the national housing crisis and the increasing emphasis on thoughtful design.
Of the original home, Sibling Architecture retained the understated facade and front two rooms, enabling an effortless transition from the street. A corridor extending from the entryway provides a clear view to an open staircase and the glass blocks of the new rear. The back of the home is further activated through a small deck positioned directly off the living room. Bifold glass doors maintain the visual connection to the garden while allowing spatial boundaries to be adjusted for entertaining. “The colour palette for downstairs – the greens, the soft oranges – is all about strengthening the relationship between the home and the landscape,” says Braun. “Being able to showcase these colours through Australian-made products like the Laminex range is important when we’re emphasising sustainability.” Laminex Hush Pine features across the kitchen cabinetry, serving as a mature reflection of the natural outdoors. Echoed by the tile splashback and soft furnishings, its green colour also nods to the detail on the original Federation facade.
“I think this project reflects Australian residential architecture today in the sense that, as a small house, it shows that you can do a lot with a little and that not all projects responding to the housing crisis need to be large and unsustainable,” says Braun. Embracing a compact footprint, A House to Gather presents a vision of high-quality, responsible renovation, an example for future builds.
Architecture and interior design by Sibling Architecture. Build by VHAUS. Joinery by Contegrity.
