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This article provides a sneak peek of the beautiful photos captured by Emma Cross, of Emma Cross Photographer. All images featured in this article are by Emma Cross Photographer.
The art was generously loaned to us by This Is No Fantasy Gallery for the photoshoot. Works included in the Living and Dining areas are by Petrina Hicks, Simon Degroot, Vincent Namatjira. Art featured in the Rumpus Room are illustrations to “Amy and Louis’ by Freya Blackwood, children’s book illustrator.
Thanks to all of the team, including our special models, for your efforts to make this happen!
More photos and project information on this project can be found here.
The Black, White, Timber House is a residential project, including alterations and additions to an existing single storey cottage, located in Fitzroy North, Victoria.
Our design for the Black, White, Timber House exemplifies innovative design and renovation within a tight budget, aiming to enhance an inner-city home’s functionality, beauty, features and value. The design resolution reinvigorates a compact urban residence by focusing on careful planning and thoughtful execution.
The project pays homage to the original cottage by preserving its presence to the street frontage, to the side street, while also retaining its historical charm. The site’s unique characteristics were fully utilized by placing living areas at the heart of the home, ensuring flexibility, access to daylight, and outlook to three sides from the main living space. This strategic choice maximised the potential of the three clear site boundaries.
A new upper storey maintains a restrained design to respect the original cottage, while the contemporary addition at the rear features a distinctive two-level structure with modulation of volume, contrasting materials and colours, purposely setting the new mass apart from the existing cottage.
Inside, seamless integration of living spaces with north and south garden areas creates a substantial outdoor living experience. The design thoughtfully incorporates purposeful window placement to control views while maintaining privacy and security.
The Black, White, Timber House project is situated within Fitzroy North, blending harmoniously with the eclectic range of building scales, ages, and materials in the neighbourhood.
By revitalizing an existing compact property and enhancing its aesthetic appeal, usability, and energy efficiency, the project contributes positively to the broader public benefit by setting a precedent for revitalizing inner-city homes while respecting their historical significance.
The Black, White, Timber House successfully addresses challenging conditions, including limited site area and conditions, and budget constraints. Despite these obstacles, the renovation added substantial value to the existing property and improved the overall quality of living.
Dealing with complex statutory planning and heritage assessment processes, the project navigated regulatory hurdles to create a design that honours the home’s history while meeting the client’s contemporary functional requirements. Designing in an inner-city environment without a north orientation presented a significant challenge. However, through thoughtful planning the project maximized the available access to sunlight, ventilation, and outdoor living space, ultimately transforming the home into a welcoming and functional space.
In summary, the Black, White, Timber House project showcases exceptional design innovation in the face of challenging constraints. By respecting history, embracing opportunities, and harmonising indoor and outdoor spaces, this renovation not only revitalised an inner-city home but also contributed positively to its surrounding context and broader community.
This project prioritizes sustainability by incorporating features such as adapting existing spaces and structure, building ‘small’ and flexible, optimizing efficiency, maximizing natural light, improving insulation, and utilizing renewable energy sources. These align with an eco-friendly design approach, reducing energy consumption and enhancing usability.
The client’s brief emphasises size and sustainability, calling for efficiency through adaptive re-use and retrofit strategies. The focus is on optimising functionality, consolidating rooms for multifunctional use, and minimising space wastage while prioritising eco-friendly practices and resource-efficient design principles to create a sustainable, space-efficient solution.
The design optimises energy efficiency by avoiding west-facing windows and glazed doors. East facing windows are minimal in number.
Passive strategies such has the use and placement of thermal mass, and cross ventilation (via strategic location of windows) reduce the need for active heating and cooling systems, decreasing energy consumption.
The home prioritises resilience and longevity by ‘designing in’ adaptable spaces and the use of durable materials.
Materials
Existing timber framed cottage structure: floor, wall, roof and ceiling structure was preserved where possible.
Reclaimed (demolished) items were donated to other homes, including tram doors, fireplaces, and HWS.
‘Recycled reds’ (bricks) were used for external face brick walls and garden walls.
Reclaimed Blackbutt (timber) used for internal joinery items including Kitchen and Laundry benches.
Water Use, Storage, and Recycling:
4,000 L Rainwater tank, connected to ground floor toilet and front garden watering system; and
Low water use fittings include Dual flush toilets and low-flow shower heads and tap sets
Insulation
Roofs: Glass wool batts: R3.5, plus
Ceilings: Insulation blanket: R1.8
Walls: Thermal wall batts to timber framed walls: R2.5; plus Rigid foam insulation (behind exterior metal wall claddings): R2.5
Floors: Underside of existing timber framed floors: Rigid insulation, R2.1, or Underside of reinforced concrete slab floor and footings: Rigid insulation, R2.7
Windows and glazed doors: Timber framed with double glazing, argon filled: 1.5Uw
Windows and glazed doors: Aluminium framed thermally broken with double glazing, argon fille: 1.6Uw (via Thermeco)
Power Generation – 17 Photovoltaic Panels for power generation, PV 5.72 kW (expected generation 6,630 kW/yr (18.1k kWh/day). This is cabled to (future) battery storage
Hot water generation – electric boosted solar hot water system (HWS)
All electric house – there is currently gas connection for the hydronic heating, including in-floor heating (within a topping slab) for living areas, plus hydronic wall panels and heated towel rails to rooms at the front of the house, and the upper floor. The gas furnace will be replaced with an electric furnace in the near future, thus removing any gas appliances to the home. Cooking is via induction cooktop and electric oven.
A key design strategy was to create an urban oasis with a strong connection to nature, offering pleasant views and outlooks to the garden and deck areas from the living areas and other spaces. This connection contributes to wellness via the abundant natural daylight, visual and physical access to garden spaces, and a horizontal perspective.
The garden at the street frontage is designed purposely with heritage and streetscape in mind. Due to the high vehicle use in this street, this garden cannot be used for edible production.
The garden to the west (light well) has retained a mature tree, now complemented by ground cover and creepers across walls and fences to enhance the northerly outlook from within the living areas.
To the south, a raised garden bed is located within the rear garden to gain maximum sunlight. There are plans to increase the edible garden area by converting the garage roof (anticipated, and allowed for, in the design and construction of the garage).
Despite facing a busy street, the house maintains strong connections with the quieter one-way side street through windows, and the gated rear garden. The client’s desire for a “neighbourhood watch” effect, preserving connections with neighbours and kids, has been successfully achieved.
The “tuck shop” window that was the old window facing the side street in the dining space has been reinterpreted in the form of the new kitchen window facing the same side street. The window is located such that it provides elevated view of the street, with interaction with passers by. Privacy can be readily controlled via internal blinds when required. The new window to the upper stair provides a similar controllable view that overlooks the side street and the greater neighbourhood.
Anecdotally, this home is comfortable all year round. It is cosy in winter (with minimal heating).
It is cool in summer, especially on the ground floor with optimum flexibility of doors and windows to control cross flow of cooling breezes. A cooling concrete floor underfoot increases the sense of calm, coolth (yes that’s a word!) and freshness.
We are currently teeing up our next photo shoot, aiming for November. This will be the photography of our alterations and additions to an existing home in Moonee Ponds.
Watch this space!
ABN 15 039 768 106.
We collaborate with clients with project sites located near and far, including Melbourne, regional Victoria and NSW.
Registered Architect ARBV 15009.
Nominated Architect NSWRB 8984.
Certified Passivhaus Designer.
Cathi Colla Architects acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which our studio is located, the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
We celebrate the diversity of Indigenous peoples and their enduring cultures and connections to the land and the waters. We acknowledge the stories, traditions, and living cultures of peoples who also work and live on this land.
We commit to building a brighter future together.
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