“There’s a swagger of largeness. Rooms like giant balloons expand out to the garden and sky.”

There are just some colours on the Pantone chart that are questionable when it comes to interiors. Maybe passable in moderation, but on a large scale? Red flags. So it comes as a refreshing surprise that the spearmint carpet used in the master bedroom of this renovated and refurbished South Yarra home works so perfectly. “This house wasn’t about putting overt colour into the architecture itself which meant we could wrap it up in the features,” says Hamish Guthrie of Hecker Guthrie Design who worked on the interiors.

Architect David Luck restored the front rooms of the semi-detached Victorian terrace and expanded an unflattering, poky 1970s rear extension into a generous new living space with “high level windows and long, low joinery that bursts open the space and tracks the arching sun”. There’s a “swagger of largeness. Rooms like giant balloons expand out to the garden and sky.” The clean, modern lines of this space foster a clear juxtaposition between the new and old parts of the house.

Engaged towards the end of the project, Hamish says that the preservation of the existing, traditional architectural elements allowed for the insertion of “something strong and contemporary” by way of the furnishings, fixtures and fittings. “We wanted to remain sensitive to the period features of the house and preserve the idea of ‘the formal room’ but make it feel contemporary and connected through quality and material.” So the heritage shell of the room has been layered with an electric Yves Klein blue rug and SCP ‘Oscar’ sofa. “The front rooms in these older-style houses aren’t used everyday so we could adopt a different take and really ramp up the colour to give a strong identity and create some cosiness.”

Hamish says he really wanted to “preserve the grandeur and floorplan of the original front rooms – with a twist”. The dimensions were maintained, albeit with enlarged openings and new, yet traditional doors,

with matt black handles and the addition of glazing to admit more light. A Lindsey Adelman pendant light is a modern take on the traditional chandelier, and the Grand Stockholm ‘Grand Lock’ cabinet reads as a modernist silhouette. Flanked by heavy drapes, the shield-shaped mirror in the dining room evokes antiquity. “We wanted to create a space where people could have a different experience compared with the back of the house with its more general, open living zone,” says Hamish.

Steps down to the new extension mark a significant threshold and a dramatic architectural juncture between old and new in proportions, palette and furnishings. An open-plan space with a kitchen, living area, scullery and laundry, the palette is lighter, awash in grey tiles, cream joinery and ‘Gascoigne Blue’ stone. The furniture too is more demure with classic, clean lines by way of a Jardan ‘Memphis’ coffee table and E15 ‘Enoki’ side table. “It’s a reversal of what you might expect,” says Hamish of the decision to create a more classic atmosphere in the extension and a bolder, more vibrant impact towards the front. “It’s a different approach, we flipped it on its head.” It was a brave decision but one the client embraced wholeheartedly. “They put such great trust in the relationship that there were barely any changes from our initial presentation to the project completion!”

The luxurious main bedroom rests on the landing of the first set of stairs. A further flight to the north-facing upper extension features two new bedrooms and a home office lined in a “functional row” says David. “The rooms line up like soldiers to fulfill their duty of providing a wonderful habitable dwelling space for whoever lives here.” #

For more go to heckerguthrie.com.au; davidluckarchitecture.com.au.