Through house
Following the purchase of their home in the outer suburbs of Naarm-Melbourne, the clients commissioned us to reconfigure the internal plan, introducing clearer circulation pathways and a more considered spatial arrangement.
Residential Project
Location:
Naarm-Melbourne, VIC
Date:
2024
Role: architect
building and planning code review and recommendations, schematic design, design development drawings
The house had been built with a laundry room right at its centre, cutting off movement and sightlines through the space. As design architect and interior designer (Sandra Githinji Studio), we set out to open up the plan. We relocated the laundry to what had been the corridor connecting the bedrooms -running front to back- so we could establish a clear spine through the house. This simple shift created sightlines to the kitchen and backyard. Material selections were made in dialogue with the owners’ South Indian and Fijian heritage, complementing their artwork and furnishings
Moving the Laundry in the centre of the house into what as previously a narrow corridor allowed for a view to the back yard from the entry, and clearer circulation paths
The new entry was provided with additional storage that created defined thresholds for the bedrooms, offering increased privacy where entry had previously been more directly from the kitchen, and a narrow corridor.
View through the house to the backyard, improving circulation
New storage, and opening from lounge to entry corridor and kitchen.
Retained existing fireplace.
The existing narrow corridor was removed, creating space for a kitchen island.
Design team:
Kholisile Dhliwayo & Sandra Githinji
This project took place on the unceded land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation .