An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne

An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne



The clients, a young family, were after a modest addition to their Victorian townhouse to house a new kitchen, dining room, bathroom, laundry, and a large storage shed for their many bikes. The addition would front their garden and get all day sun so would effectively be the space the family would spend a lot of time in. It needed to be open to the garden, light & sunny as space as well as space-efficient & very functional. A white, copper & timber palette was selected and space was planned to make maximum use of minimal space.

It is a highly efficient space, the family lives & functions in this tiny space happily. This is due to the extent of glazing & openings to the garden, giving the feeling of expansive space. It is oriented to receive maximum daylight & warmth for winter with external blinds to block out the summer heat. Every pragmatic element is also a design element through the use of materials, form, shapes, so there is no need for added or ‘feature’ elements.  There is a drip rack installed in cupboards above the sink so dishes can be washed & stored out of sight behind cupboard doors, ready for easy use later.

From this project, the architects have learned that small space can be highly livable if planned right with loads of storage built-in & large openings to daylight & a garden expanse. Also, that small space doesn’t equal a small budget necessarily, the same amount of contractors are needed, its just in creating a smaller space so cost-saving needs to be done through the smart material selection & simple building details.

an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 7 1024x746 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 6 683x1024 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 5 682x1024 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 4 1024x684 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 3 683x1024 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 2 1024x684 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne an addition to a victorian house in melbourne 1 1024x684 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne 13257 bathroom  1024x684 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne 13256 a small space with expansive views  1024x684 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne 13255 storage shed  1024x684 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne 13254 winter sun  1024x719 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne 13252 pergola  1024x683 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne 13251 shelf end to general storage cupboard  955x1024 An addition to a Victorian House in Melbourne

Project by Drawing Room Architecture

Photography by Daniel Fuge