This heritage-listed building has enjoyed a modern makeover, resulting in a home the owner truly loves.
Some buildings are steeped in history. This home in Victoria’s Ballarat is one such place, with more than 100 years of love, laughter and living experienced within its four walls.
Yet a house doesn’t exist for that long without experiencing signs of ageing. When the new owner purchased this property, the weatherboard dwelling was in desperate need of repair. It also needed to be modernised to suit the owner’s vision as the perfect home for him and his cats.
Enter Smith & Sons Ballarat, who took this historic house and gave it a much-needed makeover. This was quite extensive and incorporated three bathrooms and two bedrooms, with care taken to respect and preserve the existing features of the heritage home while still meeting the owner’s contemporary expectations.
“He wanted to feel at one with nature, so lots of natural products were used including timber and stone,” explains Ben Beasley, one of the directors and builders at Smith & Sons Ballarat. “He wanted a builder that understood his vision and would help bring it to life.”
Ben and his co-director and builder Rhys James certainly did just that. This home features many natural materials including a rich timber floor that warms the entrance hall. The use of wood continues in the bathroom with a blackbutt veneer vanity with blackbutt top — the perfect partner for the masculine grey tiles and generous shower space.
The second bathroom in the home is equally striking, with a brick feature wall paired with a black-and-white colour scheme. The freestanding bath emphasises the colour palette, with the matt-black tapware and fixtures acting as punctuation marks against the glossy white wall tiles.
Timber veneer is continued again in the kitchen, where it links the cabinetry with a dining table that extends off the island bench. This is kept feeling modern thanks to the black cabinetry and the polished concrete floor that make this contemporary extension to the house really sing. Glass display cabinets offer the opportunity for a personal touch in the room.
As per the owner’s brief, natural light is welcomed into this abode with windows at every opportunity, including as a splashback over the sink in the kitchen and up high in line with the sloped ceiling in the living area, inviting light to travel down through the space.
Consideration was given to the home’s aspect with a covered outdoor entertaining area extending the usable footprint. This provides a great space for the owner to host family and friends. Spotted gum timber battens on the patio were another natural material used in the build.
Some technological considerations were made to ensure the home remains temperate all year round. “The property is in Ballarat, so the underfloor heated slab was definitely a needed and smart feature,” says Ben. “It will make the cold winter days more bearable.” Mounted wall heaters are also present in the bedroom.
Internally, the building’s history was celebrated with ceiling mouldings and wainscotting in the hall. Considered feature lighting both acknowledges the home’s history and modernises it where needed, creating perfect harmony for the owner.
Externally, the history of the home was respected, with the features of the original facade maintained, yet this didn’t come without its challenges. “The location of the existing house, which was heritage listed, was situated far back on the block, so this restricted the design of the house, and we needed to build the extension from boundary to boundary to accommodate the client’s brief,” says Ben.
There were also issues with the garage’s external wall on the boundary, which was lower than ground height. The Smith & Sons Ballarat team incorporated a block retaining wall into the design to resolve this issue.
The finished result is one the owner loves and the builders certainly are proud of. “This project has many amazing features that all cohesively work together to create a beautiful home,” says Ben, “from the polished concrete floor to the beautiful timber and black kitchen, and the two completely different bathrooms that are both equally amazing. All the little details put together make this project so special.”
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Words Lauren Clarke Photography Daniel Domaschenz