CLASS ACT

Take a peek at some of the dream homes across our super suburbs and see what’s possible, says Gillian Upton

A contemporary new-build to create open-plan spaces that weren’t clinical and cold was part of the brief to LLI Design, together with mid-century, contemporary and traditional styling to fill throughout. The double-height living area is the core of the house with views maintained from the entrance hall and rear garden with the help of a bespoke floor-to-ceiling open shelving unit in black matt lacquered metal.

Beautiful Kitchens and Furniture roundhousedesign.com

A brief to reconfigure, extend and add a basement to this tired semi-detached house evolved into a new-build house with basement and garden room twice the size of the original for Granit Architecture + Interiors. The result was a mix of large open places and a spa, snug and treatment room. Green technology means annual CO2 emissions per square metre are approximately 40 per cent less than building regulations require. Andrew Beasley Photography.

A linear grid of wood and marble cutting across each other to create an interplay of light, timeless neutrals, layered textures and a monochrome palette are the hallmark of Kelly Hoppen, creating a calming, sophisticated and multifunctional space in this luxury apartment. Virgile Bertrand Photography.

Untouched for 30 years, the owner of this apartment wanted dRaw Architecture to combine glamour with function when remodelling the space and adding a loft extension. The addition of an entire floor plus redistribution of bedrooms created a larger living space with internal Crittall glazing to zone the space during the threemonth build. Cat Dal Interiors was the interior designer.

This contemporary townhouse has a ground floor double volume space with first floor living area overlooking the ground floor kitchen/ dining/casual living area below. The two areas are linked by a feature open-tread staircase with a minimal steel stringer and glass balustrade. LLI Design carried out the planning and design and sister company Pegasus Property undertook the development.

Merrett Houmøller was tasked with creating an urban oasis to blur the lines between inside and out and bring nature and natural light into the space. The result is this six-metre full-width ground floor rear extension clad in ‘fish scale’ natural slates featuring three pitched roofs across the rear elevation and two courtyards which give filtered light and natural ventilation throughout the extension. Fred Howarth Photography (above) and Alan Williams Photography (below).

The owners of this Victorian schoolhouse apartment tasked Stephen Kavanagh Architects to overhaul its soulless 1990s conversion and bring back the charm of the original building in a contemporary way. The double-height space was augmented with dramatic pendants, a sculptural extactor hood and collections of artwork, while the low ceiling heights above and below the mezzanine create calm bedrooms, and the beams inspired a series of playful level changes in the master bedroom to subdivide the space. Megan Taylor Photography.