Living inside out

Story by Stephanie Johnston.

Australian home design has long tipped its hat to the summer sun and our affinity with the outdoors. To wit: the sheltered verandah, so essential to hosting summer barbecues overlooking the great Australian backyard. A wet and wintery trip around the Fleurieu reveals how this tradition is evolving.

Modern design is becoming season agnostic, enabling yearround enjoyment of bespoke indoor/outdoor spaces that integrate seamlessly with each other and with the surrounding landscape.

As you approach John and Lydia Lacey’s home and studio, the Green Tank Gallery, on the outskirts of Mount Compass, it’s not hard to divine the inspiration for this eclectic ensemble of modern vernacular architecture. Just next door, the old Dairy Vale cheese factory presents as an equally eclectic cluster of corrugated iron and red brick industrial buildings. ‘I wanted it to fit in with what was here,’ explains John. ‘A lot of older farm houses look like there’s been a bit

Above: John and Lydia Lacey’s new ‘outdoor living room’ was designed around the wood oven with John designing and building the space mostly on his own. Pizza nights are now a regular occurrence with his daughter Abby’s young family living just up the street. Photographs by Jason Porter.

added on here and a bit on there...I figured that was a really nice way of integrating a new house into the country, and I carried that through into the new extension.’

Building a new outdoor living room became the landscape painter’s 2020 Covid project after an interstate exhibition was cancelled and the council imposed an immovable deadline for his long-approved plans. The design grew around Lydia’s wish for a wood-fired oven, as well as the pragmatic desire to hide a couple of giant rainwater tanks. After purchasing an oven kit, Lacey built the rest himself, ordering in the materials just ahead of lockdown. His design palette followed the original 2010 build of corrugated iron, render and limestone walling. While the extension is slightly detached from the main house, a rustic red pergola integrates old with new, the curved lines of the oven base and landscaped outdoor fire pit serving to soften the sharp angles. Fibre cement walls provided waterproof protection from the elements on three sides of the room, while moveable outdoor blinds manage the prevailing winds from the open northern aspect. A handy vent in the south-east corner enables further wind and temperature control, and the oven itself is positioned to warm the area beautifully in winter. The result is a highly usable all-weather integrated space. ‘You only have to come out here for a 5 o’clock wine and watch the sun go down,’ says John. ‘It’s the continuation of the dream.’

A hammerhead block off Railway Terrace on the edge of McLaren Vale provided very private context for inside-out living. The block is set right off the road behind other homes. Designed by local architect Dave Bennett for his sister Liz, and built by Mirage homes, the L-shaped design sits in a back corner of the block, inverting the greedy garage-dominant footprint of a typical hammerhead build. ‘It’s about use of space,’ explains Dave. ‘You’re trying to collect space by building around the fringe.’ Going to two storeys meant the house didn’t need to cover the whole site, creating further room for a northfacing outdoor terrace off the kitchen and dining area, and leaving space for landscape designer Chanelle Ockenden to work her magic.

Following a low-maintenance, low-allergy brief, Chanelle wanted the enclosed garden to be private, yet lived in. The formality of the large-format concrete steppers and crazy pave patio allowed for soft and unruly plantings of natives and exotics, while compacted crushed granite and gravel avoided the need for lawn. ‘The different

Above: The north-facing patio of this outdoor terrace can be appreciated from all rooms in the house. The low maintenance garden design creates a cosy room feel. The home designed by Bennett Design and built by Mirage Homes maximises a small block with the two-storey white block being framed by the lower level in black creating a harmonious contrast. Photographs by Nick Dunn.

zones within the garden give you different areas to relax and entertain, making the garden feel a lot larger than it is,’ she explains.

Meanwhile Dave, who is currently house-sitting his own design, enjoys the peace and quiet of the home’s location adjacent to the linear park shiraz trail. ‘First thing in the morning I wander down the drive, grab the dogs, and within a minute I’m on the track, going for a walk,’ he says.

Page left: The Basket Range stonework expertly crafted by Billy Goat Brick & Stone, creates a stunning backdrop for both interiors and exteriors. Outdoor seating from Living by Design. Above: The high ceilings and exposed beams are all attributers to the impressive scale of the space. Furnishings in leather, metal, concrete and glass create a chic industrial vibe. Photographs by Jason Porter.

When James and Andrea Warburton began work on their dream build at Chapel Hill near Echunga, he started with the shed. At 200 square metres and a height of seven metres – to accommodate his boat and a custom-built canary yellow Holden HX ute – this shed was no afterthought.

Viewed from the road, the black steel-clad structure intrigues with its elegant timber doorway. It’s not until you walk around the front that all is revealed. On the southern and western aspects, two industrial-scale steel-framed sliding glass doors open up the beautiful Basket Range stonework to broad patios, sweeping lawns and the forest beyond, turning the shed into an extraordinary and flexible inside-out venue.

On inside days, heating has proved a challenge in the vast cathedrallike space of towering walls and massive exposed beams. A large combustion heater struggled in the space, but its replacement – an industrial jet heater – keeps the place toasty, with two wall radiators providing backup for mid-winter gatherings. Concrete formwork features throughout the build, in the high table, kitchen bench and two symmetrically-placed outdoor tables, while a polished concrete floor completes the picture. James’ boat and car create a suitably theatrical backdrop, but his pièce de résistance is undoubtedly the custom-made parrilla charcoal grill, which caters for large numbers and can be wheeled inside or out at whim.

The potential for this high spec shed to host formal functions and events is apparent, but for the time being James and his family (including four children under five) are happy to enjoy it for what it is. ‘For me, now, it’s this summer place where I come down and cook on the charcoal, and the kids are on the lawn,’ says James. But it’s not hard to imagine the summery shrieks of young children on the grass being replaced by the pad of slippered-feet inside on a winter’s day. And always the smell of burning charcoal promising delight, whether inside or out.