How a 1960s beach shack has been sympathetically updated

This Portsea beach house has kept its retro charm but now has way more space and a greater connection with the garden.

The home’s new living room opens right up to the outdoors. Pictures: Michael Kai

The old beach shacks on the Mornington Peninsula certainly have their charm, but few would call them practical.

The owners of this 1960s home adored the craftsmanship and location of their beach shack, near Portsea’s Shelly Beach, but needed more space for their kids and some creature comforts.

“It was your typical beach shack from the ’60s, with timber weatherboards,” recalled architect Berit Barton, of Pleysier Perkins, hired to reinvent the home.

“There were lots of creams and yellows throughout and it was quite dated.”

Ms Barton was impressed, however, with the home’s strong mid-century features: white timber windows, the old textured ceiling and the internal wiggly steel beam.

“The level of craftsmanship was wonderful, too,” she said. “We had textures to work with, and there was an existing brick chimney fireplace that produced a roaring fire. The owners just wanted to freshen up the home, rethink the kitchen and connection to the outdoors and create a new living space.”

The home, post-renovation. The fireplace and wiggly ceiling beam are original features.

Room to move

While the shack had four decent-sized bedrooms, the meals, kitchen and living areas were all in the one space, which meant there was no room for the family to spread out.

So, an extension was built at the side of the home, giving the house a new living area.

“It meant we split the garden, with the new living area opening up on either side to the outdoors,” Ms Barton said.

Clever design tricks beautifully connect the new room with the garden.

A low internal concrete bench extends outdoors, as do distinctive interior walls.

“And the slate paving that was used in the extension was continued to the outside,” Ms Barton said.

The new living area, with a low concrete bench, opens to the outdoors on either side.

The exterior concrete bench mirrors the one inside.

The bench also adds an extra charming feature to the facade.

The new living room has an angled roof to increase the sense of space, its exposed beams adding textural interest, while highlight windows were added near the ceiling.

“The highlight windows bring in rays of westerly light and reveal neighbouring treetops,” Ms Barton explained.

Freshen up

Also targeted in the renovation was the bathroom, which was updated, while a new ensuite was added. And the kitchen was overhauled.

“The owners love to cook, so we needed a fully functioning kitchen,” said Ms Barton, who worked with Pleysier Perkins interior designer Elise Burton to create a new look.

The overhauled kitchen.

Pale timber cabinetry adds to the fresh look.

A large timber cabinet that hugs the existing brick fireplace was installed to hide the fridge.

“Fitting in the fridge in a seamless fashion was a challenge, so we concealed it to maintain the look of the home,” Ms Barton explained.

New pale-timber cabinets with curves add a softening touch and are in keeping with the home’s retro style.

“We chose a speckled-blue tile for the kitchen, which is a bit of a nod to the 1960s as well,” Ms Barton said. “And in the bathrooms we used colourful terrazzo benchtops as another nod to the mid-century look.”

Speckled-blue tiles give the kitchen a ‘60s note.

Terrazzo benchtops are another mid-century nod.

Windows were added to the kitchen for light and views, while the old timber floors received a facelift.

“The floors were in bad shape – they had become quite orange,” Ms Barton recalled. “So, we polished them in a softer-coloured finish.”

The exterior also received a long-overdue lick of paint.

“The outside was a beige/yellow colour and we needed something to make it look fresh again, so that is where the deep blue came in,” Ms Barton said. “The internal brickwork was painted white, too, to modernise the interior.”

Floors were polished in a softer-colour finish and internal bricks painted white.

Outside chance

When it came to the backyard, the owners were open to trying new things, so Ms Barton’s team built two arched niches: one for the barbecue and one for the pizza oven.

“Most people just use a kit for their pizza oven, but this pizza oven is actually custom made,” Ms Barton said. “We had to research how to do that quite extensively because it is quite an old craft from Greece and Italy.”

Arched niches house the barbecue and pizza oven.

The owners had already built a pergola, set apart from the house, which cast lovely shadows from the timber slats.

“We paved from the house to the pergola, which really ties the house to the outdoor space,” Ms Barton said.

Timber slats cast lovely shadows, while paving connects the house to the outdoors.

It’s no surprise to hear the holiday home’s renovation has been so successful, the owners can’t keep away.

“I think they were planning on using the home as an Airbnb property occasionally,” Ms Barton said. “But they have been using it so frequently, they may just keep it for themselves to enjoy.”

Originally published as How a 1960s beach shack has been sympathetically updated