Pale oak staircases ascend to a pair of mezzanine floors set in the rafters of this Melbourne residence, which has been renovated by regional architect Wilson Tang.
Tang was asked by two of his friends to reorganise the layout of their single-storey property, which sits in a cul-de-sac in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond.
Named Theresa St Residence, the renovation is the 1st built project by Tang’s Melbourne-based studio Sonelo, which he established in 2014. Doing work to a modest construction budget, the architect described it as an “workout in restraint”.
Steep ladder-like staircases providing access to two mezzanines had been replaced with much more consumer-friendly timber methods, while a hallway that dominated the ground level was converted into a kitchen and dining region.
“We have been dazed by what presented prior to us,” explained Tang. “On entry, we have been greeted by a tripartite layout with a rather broad hallway barrelling through the gut of the home into the residing space.”
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“Two clumsy stairs ascended from the hallway to mezzanines,” he continued. “Spaces were dim and disjointed. Mezzanines had been lower in headroom. Bathrooms had been bunker-like, far eliminated from the loft interiors it boasted.”
The two staircases are positioned in the rear corners of the residence, enclosed by solid white balustrades. Their timber steps match the engineered oak floors, providing continuity to the various spaces.
“The layout approach to the stair seeks to not impede on the scale of area,” Tang informed Dezeen. “The new staircases are gentler in slope.”
1 of the staircases prospects to an upstairs bedroom, positioned right above an additional one particular on the ground floor, while the other provides entry to a review over the laundry room and garage. Both rooms sit between grey metal roof trusses.
The property’s entrance hall is at the centre of the strategy. Big circular coat pegs produce polkadots across the white wall of the room.
Just past, the kitchen, dining location and bathrooms all occupy double-height spaces.
A marble dining table extends from 1 side of a steel-wrapped kitchen island and stretches almost to the door of a residing space at the back of the residence.
Pastel green tiles give splash-backs in the kitchen and laundry space, and cover the walls and the floors of the bathrooms.
“Subtlety is the one particular word Theresa St Residence evokes,” explained Tang. “The neutrality, the simplicity, and the continuity of the palette are vital in this venture. They make the house feels spacious and light filled.”
Richmond has been the target of intensive redevelopment considering that the 1990s and several of the area’s small brick homes have been replaced or extended. Other examples consist of a narrow wooden residence by neighborhood studio Edwards Moore and an extended home by architect Andrew Maynard.
Photography is by Peter Bennetts and Cameron Conwell.
Diagram 
Ground floor prepare 
Mezzanine floor program 
Part one particular 
Segment two 
Part 3 Dezeen
