Day: May 15, 2020

Landscaping this sumptuous sanctuary in the middle of Redfern was just as Bullamakanka sung in the ’70s: ‘Give me a home among the gum trees’. But for landscape architect, Katy Svalbe of Svalbe + Co, it was more a case of building a home between the twisted frangipane ’round the front, and the statuesque lemon-scented gum out the back. These two trees frame the entire garden palette, as materials and plants were chosen to complement the trees at either end of the property.

Katy describes the garden’s ‘delicious ochre patina’, layered through the raised garden beds made from corten steel, a ‘rusted’ look material which also facilitates the undulating heights between the verandah and garden. Pre-existing sandstone pavers were repurposed to create a meandering garden walk, and recycled railway sleepers form a landing pad at the rear of the property for bikes and bins to rest. A burst of

When architect Josephine Hurley first entered this converted 1909 factory in Sydney’s Annandale, she was greeted by a mismatch of architectural styles and details, from classical columns to stained glass windows. The space was also severely lacking in comfort, with natural light, ventilation and thermal performance all needing to be addressed. It was her job to create a cohesive vision for the interiors, while seriously improving the home’s liveability to suit a couple and their child.

Josephine’s vision was to design a family-friendly home, but not at the expense of sophistication. Drawing inspiration from existing textures, patterns and colours on site, her approach was to declutter the space without stripping it of history and character. ‘The design focused on revealing the core structure of the warehouse, retaining key pieces of architecture and sympathetically adding a new layer to reflect the owner’s personality,’ Josephine says. ‘We wanted to embrace the warehouse