Northcote no. 2 is a gracious old Victorian with a country feel. The original double-fronted street-facing portion of the house needed attention/restoration but generous proportions and beautiful heritage features meant the restoration was well worth it. An earlier extension with a large on-show kitchen trapped between a working gully kitchen and internal walkway to a protruding bathroom and add-on laundry (to the west) had limited access to the backyard, leaving the back half of the house feeling dreary and light deficient. The add-on section had to go and we collaborated with Ancher Architecture Office to work out how best to funnel warmth and natural light into the boundary-to-boundary south-facing rear of the house through the use of internal courtyards, voids and skylights.

'The new two storey addition is held away from the original building, which creates two courtyard spaces either side of a largely glazed hall link. Though the use of masonry is maintained in the extension, there is a clear shift in texture and colour between old and new forms so each are immediately legible. The courtyards provide breathing space between the forms, but they also serve to allow space for solar penetration deep into the plan. There is an abundance of changing natural light conditions experienced within the building throughout the course of the day.' Ancher Architecture Office.

The clear shift between old and new is softened by an earthy palette of finishes in the extension with full height blackbutt windows/doors, bagged brick walls and a mix of blackbutt and creamy off-white joinery. The kitchen design is minimal with no overhead cabinetry other than a bar/breakfast bar concealed within blackbutt veneer and hand-painted panels concealing a walk-in pantry and fridge. A generous messmate island bench grounds the aesthetic and makes the kitchen feel warm and inviting. 

The cleverly proportioned courtyards bathe the extension in natural light, the western courtyard providing kitchen herbs and north-eastern courtyard providing calming garden views with a beautiful crepe myrtle sitting happily in the centre. The larger north eastern courtyard funnels all-day light into the living area while the smaller western courtyard sheds afternoon sun into the walkway and kitchen areas, with a powder room and stair up to the master bedroom/ensuite zone housed in the bridge to reduce the amount of harsh western heat entering the house. The master bedroom/ensuite zone sits on top of the living/kitchen area but is set back from the protruding dining area (also shielding the house from the west) so as not to impose on the backyard. A void separating the ensuite shower from a northern window floods the bathroom and the courtyard bench seat below with light while also providing views to the tree-lined street and the iconic westgarth cinema.

The original part of the house needed reconfiguring to house three bedrooms, a study, a main bathroom and laundry. The northern front rooms were restored and retained while the two south-facing bedrooms were reduced to house a central bathroom on the east and laundry to the west – both lit up by generous skylights – and the smaller southern bedrooms enjoying views to the two courtyards. The palette is kept fresh and light in this section of house so as not to detract from the beautiful heritage features.

The country feel is carried from front to back with recycled bricks, timber cladding and the original barn sliding door retained from the old shed which needed to be halved in size to allow for the fire pit area. It's not a huge house at 189 sq but the three distinct, separate zones make it function happily for the family of five. The overall result is a calming, cohesive house full of surprises and beautiful outlooks of garden, streetscape, rooftops and the city beyond.

Hardscaping by Gavin Smith Garden Design & Construction.

Photography by Martina Gemmola.

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