Exploring the perennial themes of ‘identity’ and what is ‘just enough’, Cascade House is a contemporary extension to an inter-war, solid-brick, semi-detached home in Northcote. Built during WWII, the original dwelling comprised an austere 4 rooms in total, but had a large north-facing backyard.

Our clients were a young immigrant family of four who wanted to expand the residence to meet the evolving needs of their two young children while catering to their lifestyle and culture.

The catch – could we make it all happen without burning a hole in the pocket?

Planning: Right-sized Building for Right-sized Living

At andever, we advocate building smart over building more. We turn questions from “How much space can we get?” to “How much space do you actually need?”

After careful consideration of our clients’ individual, family, and social needs, we doubled the original built area of 76 sq.m. to a modest 150 sq.m., well within the Rescode setback requirements for the plot. The newly designed upper level form was also finely tuned to prevent overshadowing private open spaces. With this, a simple building surveyor approval was all that was needed.

Now, we all know that a smaller overall footprint directly translates to construction cost savings. Read on to find out how we ensured that the resulting home would be right-sized for a family of four.

Modest Scale + Uber Efficient Floor Plan (= Lower Costs)

The new extension to the house was to be built in the abundant backyard and was connected to the original building through a newly constructed main entranceway. The original four rooms were converted to bedrooms for the two kids overlooking the front garden, a guest room, laundry/utility room and bathrooms. The extension comprised the main living and dining spaces, a semi-open kitchen, and a corridor with the stairwell on the ground floor, and the study and master bedroom with ensuite bath upstairs.

Given that we had not pushed for the maximum permissible gross floor area that Rescode would allow, we applied smart design and an efficient layout to better utilise the modestly scaled spaces. This, of course, involves making the spaces work harder.

Designing multi-purpose rooms:

The guest bedroom is fitted with a vertical Murphy bed and doubles up as the gym/entertainment room through most of the year. The landing atop the stairs to the upper floor is fitted out as a study for one, with a sliding door for privacy and noise attenuation that otherwise glides (and hides) seamlessly into the side of the desk.

Ensuring adequate integrated storage:

A dining table bench and a daybed built along the walls double up as recessed low-height storage, making the liveable areas appear more spacious while ensuring sufficient storage for toys, books, dry goods and various odds-and-ends.

An in-built shoe rack under the stairs gives a flush neat appearance while ensuring abundant space for all manner of footwear. A narrow bookcase that wraps along the edge of the corridor saves space while adding avenues for colourful memorabilia.

Meeting the Evolving Lifestyle Needs of a Growing family

Flow and function are just as important.

Wide doors and a generous hallway space allow for a pram (and as the children grow, bulky sports equipment) to go through. Plug points installed within cupboards facilitate easy ironing, vacuuming and other services. The use of durable materials, quality sound-proofing and robust construction methods cater for long-term rough and tough use. 

Our clients love the outdoors and have a passion for gardening and BBQ dinners. We designed the main family spaces to have fully retractable doors to the adjoining backyard so gatherings could naturally spill out into the open.

The master bedroom enjoys full views of the generous north-facing backyard and the two children’s bedrooms were already facing the front garden. A small courtyard designed between the old and the new building ensures that the guest room, tucked in the middle of the house, also has a green outlook.

Cost-Effective Design Elements that Celebrate Culture, Heritage & Identity

Beyond function, our clients wanted a home that celebrated their own culture and paid homage to the heritage of the original inter-war home.

We designed a hit-and-miss brick screened window at the dining area, reminiscent of the ‘jali window’ of South Asia and an in-built daybed for lounging in the main living spaces. Even the little courtyard at the very centre of the home is inspired by the ‘aangan’ of traditional South Asian homes. 

The original heritage dwelling featured flashes of exuberance in the radiating art-deco motifs on the ceilings. We extracted these hidden moments of joy and took them outside to create the main west-facing façade of the house. Using a corbelled pattern and recycled brick painted white, we created a living art wall where one can while away the afternoon marvelling at the play of light and shadow across the bricks.  Installing a rain chain allows the family to enjoy the sights and sounds of a natural water fountain and becomes a focal point of the house. 

Creating this living art out of recycled brick that would have otherwise made it to the landfill not only saved on construction costs but was also environmentally friendly.

6 Years Later: Award-winning Aesthetic x Family-oriented Function

Today, Cascade house is clearly a home where aesthetic meets function. Recognising this, it has garnered many awards and accolades, including the national Think Brick Awards 2019 (Winner) and Houses Magazine Awards 2019 (Shortlisted), plus the state-level AIA Victorian Chapter Awards 2019 (Shortlisted). It has also received extensive media coverage for a home that truly embeds the cultural identity of its owners.

Apart from meeting all their requirements, the family saves on utility bills. Cascade House is wrapped by a wall of landscape on three sides and minimal paving so that the site still remains 50% permeable to rainwater and minimizes any urban heat island effect. The water collected from the roofs and rain chain feature is also used to irrigate the garden beds.

Our clients love the efficiency and comfort of their home. Their guests simply cannot believe that the home is a modest 150 sq m; it does so much within such a small footprint and without compromising on either space or storage.