the flip side

THESE MIRROR-IMAGE HOMES, BUILT FROM SCRATCH IN JUST 12 WEEKS, ARE A NEAT BLEND OF COASTAL AND CONTEMPORARY STYLE

Opting to knock down and rebuild is a big enough challenge. Yet interior designer Catherine Heraghty, founder of The Stables, took on a much larger one when she demolished her 70-year-old, two-bed Sydney cottage. Replacing it with two three-bedroom duplexes – one to keep and one to sell – and all in just 12 weeks. “Sometimes the decision-making felt endless, but one more decision made, meant one more step closer to the finish line!” says Catherine, who worked on the project with builder Neil Hipwell of Futureflip.

The build may have been brief, but the good looks of the twin homes and their spectacular two-tone exteriors make it timeless. “We wanted something striking!” says Catherine. Mission accomplished, with traditional Linea Cladding, painted in crisp Dulux Lexicon Quarter, providing a coastal note on the homes’ top section. This complements the more modern look of Axon Cladding in Dulux Monument on the base. A party wall enveloped in the broader-width panels with Stria Cladding which neatly divides the buildings.

Catherine carried the modern-coastal aesthetic through out the interiors, giving her own duplex a modern feel and her investment property a coastle vibe. “The strong use of vertical lines helped strengthen the modern look I was trying to achieve, and it tied in perfectly with the Axon Cladding that I used externally,” she says. The other home has a softer, more layered feel, with an emphasis on texture that speaks to the Linea Weatherboard outside. “It was important that our interiors were also consistent with the outside of the house,” she says. “Internally, the architecture was quite minimal but I was able to soften this up with the use of warmer colour palettes and textured finishes, making the home feel friendly and inviting.” A welcome home, indeed.

“The Linea Weatherboard gave the exterior some much-needed texture and softened the look. It was so important that the home did not feel too cold”

SOFT TOUCHES Custom timber front doors introduce a natural element that perfectly complements the black-painted Axon Cladding and garage doors.

LEFT TO RIGHT: Vertical lines feature throughout Catherine’s home, on the deck’s privacy screen (opposite), the tiled bathroom walls, the bedroom’s interior cladding and the kitchen’s custom cabinetry.