Winner of the HIA NSW 2010
Green Smart Energy Efficiency Award

Set on a long narrow block in the northern suburbs of Sydney, the house was designed to capture natural sunlight and create a natural airflow to eliminate the need for mechanical air conditioning.

Experimenting in new building materials, such as coreten fascias, and pushing the boundaries of traditional building processes and materials have brought together a great mix of old and new to give a most “comfortable feeling house”.

Recycled hardwood cladding, steel doors and windows, raw bricks, rammed earth and concrete give us a mixture of materials which were used on the house to give us a maintenance free house which for the owner, with three young children and a busy husband gives her the time to enjoy life with her family.

An existing house of double brick and steel windows were the starting point for the palette of the new building. Concrete floors and rammed earth walls added to the rustic feel of the existing house.

Coreten fascia wrapped around three difference roof levels tied the buildings together whilst anchoring their different levels back to the ground. Large over hangs enabled winter sun into the building but also keeping out the hot summer sun and heat.

A combination of all these earthy materials resulted in a house that harks back to all the early craftsmanship of yesteryear, with a high tech finish to hold its own with any modern build and we feel it is one of the finest we have built.