Downsizing for a bigger life

Moving into a more compact house needn’t mean living a smaller life

The semi-detached house in Kirribilli includes joinery designed by Andrew Waller. Pictures: Nick Watt

There’s nothing like downsizing to help you understand what really matters to you in life. For this couple, who were moving from a larger house in Kirribilli now that their children had left home, their needs were clear.

A simple white palette with black accents offers a clean look. All pictures: Nick Watt

They wanted a comfortable home with room for their extensive book collection and a spacious main bedroom suite. They still wanted to entertain on occasion, so a workable open living kitchen and dining space was a priority.

The three-bedroom semi detached cottage they bought in the same suburb was everything they wanted in terms of size, but lacked some of the function they sought from a home.

The renovation made short work of an overly complicated open-plan living space

Designer Andrew Waller had worked with the owners on previous projects and was uniquely placed to understand their needs, and their changing circumstances.

Reorganising the layout of the ground floor to better position the kitchen was the first priority for Andrew. The dining and kitchen occupied the same area in the middle of the floorplan but Andrew swapped them over so that the kitchen was against the shared wall, which had an old hearth, and the dining space had access to the window.

Andrew installed a banquette under the window to provide more seating while the old hearth made the ideal location for the oven. A small space off the kitchen became the butler’s pantry while an island bench became the centrepiece of the kitchen.

Losing a bedroom meant the owners could turn the main bedroom into a suite

“We suggested the butler’s pantry because the kitchen is open plan and it tidies up the main kitchen area,” he says.

Upstairs, Andrew simplified the floorplan to make way for the new main bedroom suite.

“They wanted a kingsize bed but the room wasn’t big enough,” he says. “They wanted a wardrobe as well but the space was not there for that either.”

A simplified floorplan throughout has made the home a study in serenity

So Andrew took the unusual step to reduce the three bedrooms upstairs to two, converting one of the bedrooms into a spacious walk-in robe and ensuite.

A small ensuite at the top of the stairs was also removed in favour of a custom-built bookcase for their nonfiction collection. Deeper bookcases were installed in the formal lounge at the front of the house on the ground floor to cater for their coffee table books.

“They have a lot of books,” he says. “We could have put books everywhere.”

THE SOURCE
Designer Andrew Waller, Mr Waller, mrwaller.com

Restored Carrara marble fireplace  Chippendale Restorations, chippendalerestorations.com.au

Timber floorboards Tallowwood from Barrenjoey Timber, barrenjoeytimber.com.au

Kitchen stools  Lale milking stools from Inartisan, inartisan.com

Vintage window with mirror backing in dining room Le Forge, leforge.com.au