DESIGNER LABEL
A designer’s Bondi apartment makes the most of balmy beachside weather with indoor-outdoor living and a pool
cheat sheet
Who lives here: Designer Petrit Gratsis (pictured), who specialises in interior and exterior work for residential and small commercial sites.
Style of home: A ground floor split-level apartment in a modernist-style duplex block on Sydney’s Bondi Beach. The internal renovation took four months to complete. The budget for the internal renovation ended up at $165k after some unexpected costs and splurging on a feature fireplace.
Since his teenage years, Petrit Gratsis had always dreamt of a career in design. After years of owning a cafe, he decided to take the leap, changing careers to become an interior designer. Recently, he faced his ultimate design challenge:
renovating the ground- flflfloor apartment of the modernist duplex block he owns on Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach.
Upon buying the home in 2002, Petrit’s design eye instantly saw its huge potential. However, not all went to plan when it came to purchasing the home. “I invited my best mate to come and view the place,” says Petrit. “We proceeded to the local pub for a few beers, and I woke up the following day with a serious hangover. I had missed the auction and subsequently forgot about the property!” His follow-up call six weeks later revealed the home had passed in and, as the saying goes, the rest is history!
The dwelling is divided into two apartments with one upstairs and the other on the ground floor. Petrit moved into the upstairs apartment and left the downstairs apartment relatively untouched. Longing for a change and the opportunity to better connect the property with the outdoors, he made the decision in early 2015 to renovate the ground-floor apartment and include a plunge pool.
Putting his design skills and knowledge into practice, the ideas began to flow. “I began to sketch and create my own design brief,” says Petrit. “Being the client and designer in your own home, you can let your imagination run wild.” Petrit’s brief for himself was
to create a space that not only embraced the Australian way of indoor-outdoor living, but also incorporated the design elements that he loves – polished concrete floors and high ceilings – balanced with good proportions and most importantly, a focus on functionality.
The renovation was undertaken in two stages, with the first step gutting all the internal rooms and reconfiguring the floorplan, before construction started. Petrit had the genius idea of converting the redundant double garage downstairs (with a 3.8-metre ceiling height!) into an oversized library living room, thus creating a much larger split-level home. Another clever use of space was combining the bathroom and WC into one large bathroom, creating room for a freestanding bath.
Part two of the renovation was the exterior work. The duplex had been built on an unusual triangular-shaped block, with the backyard located at the smallest point. This became the ideal spot for a small plunge pool, as it was also located directly off the living area downstairs. Bi-fold doors were installed to connect the outdoor and indoor living areas, perfect for entertaining friends.
With all the renovation work complete, the final focus was to furnish and decorate the home. Wanting to create a cosy space downstairs, he used Dulux Black paint in a matt finish for the back wall and ceiling. This was also a great backdrop to house Petrit’s library of books. “I often use black in a space for my clients,” he says. “I liken it to wearing a classic black suit, or a woman wearing a black evening dress. The secret is then layering with the right accessories to make it all work.”
Preparation was the key to success during the furnishing stage. Many of the big-ticket items, such as the ceiling-hung Oblica fireplace and handcrafted dining table, were ordered some time in advance to arrive without delays. The final layer of decorating was to create some inner tranquillity with indoor plants. Petrit loves greenery in the home, however, he felt that keeping plants alive was not his strong point. After much research, he found life-like artificial plants and has used these to add ‘life’ throughout the home.
As both the designer and client, Petrit’s expectations of the design and renovation were high.Yet, he feels this is his best project to date.“I wouldn’t change anything about the home now,” he says. “It’s how I imagined it initially in my mind, but better! Having moved in, I feel like I’m on a permanent holiday, with great access from indoors to outdoors.” Design brief achieved – with one very happy client!
“I often use black in a space. The secret is is then layering with the right accessories” PETRIT GRATSIS, OWNER