Welcome Return With homeowners locked out by lockdown, a terrific design and build team pulled off an amazing renovation by remote.

Works were well underway when Melbourne’s lockdown turned one couple’s interstate sojourn into an extended stay. But the renovation team rallied – and the homecoming was all the sweeter.

It wasn’t, shall we say, the most typically travelled road to renovation glory. Yet, taken in truly unprecedented times, it proved a surprisingly smooth journey – one that culminated in the happiest of outcomes for Melbourne couple Tracy and Nirangjan. Not simply because the completion of the project late last year coincided with the lifting of the city’s extended stage-four lockdowns, but also because it marked a particularly joyous life event: the birth of the couple’s first child, son Ashton. “Ashton arrived just as the renovation was finishing,” says Tracy, “And so much had happened in the months before !”

Indeed, when Tracy and Nirangjan packed up their car and headed to Sydney to visit Nirangjan’s family earlier in the year, the plan was to stay “only a few weeks”. At the time, the transformation of the couple’s quaint Edward ian cottage on a snug 417- square-metre block in Melbourne’s inner north-east was already well underway.

Master minded by architects Buck& Simple, the renovation was designed not only to dramatically reimagine the core living zones, but to forge a far more congenial relationship between the house and its garden.

“We’re based in Sydney and loved the idea of a Melbourne project,” says Buck & Simple director Kurt Crisp. “We had a few video calls with Tracy and Nirangjan to discuss how we would manage the process for design and construction. We were willing to work through even the most unconventional solutions.”

And that was just as well. For only weeks after Tracy and Nirangjan crossed the border into NSW, their home town was plunged into a 111-day lockdown.

“We found ourselves in a situation with no client and no architect in the state where the renovation was taking place,” says Kurt. “Fortunately, the builder was extremely responsive and we were able to carry out general inspections and monitor the progress over video calls.” In fact, with Momentum Building Group doing such a great job, Tracy and Nirangjan were able to extend their interstate stay. The project never faltered.

“Momentum was super-impressive at managing and keeping everything on track, as was Kurt at translating our garbled thoughts of what we wanted into a final design outcome,” says Nirangjan.

To Kurt, however, the vision was always clear. “The weatherboard cottage was becoming quite tired. Nonetheless it had loads of charm,” he says. “But a cluttered previous add-on was confirmation that we had to give the rear half of the home a clean slate.” Certainly, Buck & Simple did that – and so much more. What was once a dysfunctional mishmash of poky rooms is now a light, airy and eminently liveable domain. It’s also one in which style forms a bold and beautiful partnership with practicality.

“The design combines the rear living rooms into a single open space for the kitchen, dining and living zones,” says Kurt. “This area includes a feature doublesided fireplace, glass doors to stop the warm air escaping in winter and a circular skylight to bring in much-needed natural light. We also created a new bathroom, laundry and ensuite.”

When it came to the materials, organic colour and texture were prioritised in the form of tactile stone and timber set against a crisp white base. “Terrazzo is used throughout the living areas to ground the palette, with blonde timber boards laid in a herringbone pattern creating warmth in the original part of the home,” says Kurt. “The central hallway has also been slightly embellished and modernised with black steel-framed doors and a black ceiling, while most of the back wall of the house was replaced with sliding glass doors.”

With the garden at last receiving a warm welcome into the home, landscape designer Inge Jabara got to work granting it a leafy new life. A lushly layered landscape envelops the home providing a verdant sanctuary for all – the clan’s Rhodesian ridgeback, Khan, included.

Indeed, the completed house and garden, says Kurt, is living its best life. As is the family that calls it home. “It’s even better than we ever imagined,” says Tracy.

THE AIM WAS TO REWORK THE LIVING ZONES AND TO FORGE A FAR MORE CONGENIAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HOUSE AND GARDEN.

| PHOTOGRAPHY Marnie Hawson STREET FRONTAGE The hedge, an existing feature, provides privacy from the street while adding to the character of the cottage. Path made with bluestone pavers. REAR GARDEN Opposite Homeowners Nirangjan and Tracy with their baby son Ashton and Khan the Rhodesian ridgeback. Lux outdoor sofa and Tresse ottoman, both Osier Belle. Mystic outdoor tiles, CDK Stone. Landscaping by Inge Jabara Landscapes.

KITCHEN/DINING/LIVING Custom dining table, BA Furniture. Elford dining chairs, Temple & Webster. Orient P2 pendant light, Danish Red. Paul Agnew Designs ‘Siena Seven Fifty’ freestanding wood heater, Living Fire. Custom concrete plinth, Kyash Cubes. Velux skylight. The kitchen joinery, by Phelan Interiors, is feature-grade blackbutt. The benchtops are Neolith Beton from CDK Stone. Sling barstools, Obodo. Kingston brass ceiling lights, Tovo Lighting. Custom steel-framed doors, Skyrange. Armchair, Osier Belle. Jasper II sofa, King. For similar rug, try Choices Flooring. Terrazzo floor tiles, Fibonacci Stone.

OUTDOOR LIVING Opening the stacking doors at the rear of the home expands the living space exponentially. KITCHEN The freestanding wood heater, set on a custom-made plinth, doubles as a room divider in the open-plan area. Asko stove and oven, both E&S.

MAIN ENSUITE Left Wall mirrors, Temple & Webster. Custom vanity, Phelan Interiors. Nero Marquina marble benchtop, CDK Stone. Tapware, Astra Walker. Roca ‘Inspira’ basins, Reece. Nextone Grey wall/floor tiles, Signorino. Custom sliding door, Skyrange. MAIN BATHROOM This image and below left Aura bath, Caroma. All tapware and towel rail, Astra Walker. Limestone wall/ floor tiles, Signorino. Kado ‘Lussi’ basins, Reece. GUESTROOM Below Artwork from Rodwell and Astor. Bed, Koala. For similar chevron flooring, try Royal Oak Floors. MAIN BEDROOM Opposite Sunrise bed and Inkster ‘Flashlight’ pendant light, all Yard Furniture. Joinery, Phelan Interiors.