The dark arts

Built in 1878 as part of the original Good Hope Estate, this grand terrace was in need of an update by the time the present owners bought it 140 years later, in 2018.

Not that it was in original condition. Rather, the Glenmore Rd property had been renovated regularly throughout its long life, but was in need of further coaxing to better connect the kitchen and living areas at its rear to the back garden and garage beyond, and to usher in a more luxurious and contemporary feel.

As home to a family with three older children, the 252sq m house with two car spaces also needed more areas for privacy for each family member.

The task of reimagining the grand terrace went to Megan Burns, from CM Studio, who took a two-fold approach to the restoration: she wanted to transform the property into a more functional family home, while “interlacing the old with the new” to create a home seamlessly in keeping with its heritage neighbourhood.

“The family were downsizing but still had three kids that were teen to early adult in age, so needed the space to work for them,” says Burns. “They also wanted to use the spaces together but have their own private spaces when required.”

The project was complicated. It involved updating the kitchen, living and dining spaces, providing a better connection to the garden and garage beyond, updating the bathrooms throughout the house, redesigning the main bedroom, balcony and ensuite, and adding a basement to house a family sized laundry and cellar.

“The rear addition that houses the dining and kitchen was all new,” Burns explains. “The backyard was also all new and the new basement was dug out. Internal changes included new bathrooms throughout and joinery.”

Like all terrace projects, issues emerged throughout the build, with problems arising as more of the work was commenced.

“It’s always challenging working in an old terrace,” Burns says. “We set in the basement off the adjoining terrace walls to give us a buffer structurally so as not to impact neighbours. This restricted the basement size but we made it work.

“Lightly touching the upper levels of the home meant that things just snowballed sometimes, where we’d pull one thing out and then we would need to fix a whole bunch of other things.”

Throughout the renovation, the principle was to bring out the beauty of the house. Burns decided to introduce a dark palette to the build that would “compliment the classic and strong architecture of its surrounds”.

“We refinished all the existing floors in black, then used that as a reference point for the addition,” she says. “We wanted a classic palette that was very sophisticated.

“In terms of other finishes, we used bridge-painted steel doors and windows with a deep reveal, then white-painted brick, sandstone paving and concrete floors painted with black veneer. Then there were brass details on joinery handles and handrails internally and Concordia marble.

“The marble accents and heritage detailing paid homage to the terrace’s origins in the living space, before transitioning down to the open kitchen and dining area.

“It was all brought to life by the vast ceiling height of the house, and complimented by the bronze anodised doors and windows that wrap the rear of the terrace, the kitchen and dining space to weave a modern touch into the classic style.”

Although the finishes were dark in hue, Burns was careful to keep light flowing throughout the house.

“It’s always really important to have light in these terraces, especially these big ones that are so deep,” she says.

“We kept a courtyard in the plan to make sure light would continue to get into the front living rooms. We also wanted to provide a place to open and get fresh air as well as having a transition point from old to new as you descend the stairs into the rear living spaces.”

Interestingly, heritage research on the four-bedroom, three-bathroom home found that the property was originally subdivided in 1874, with the attached houses at 250 and 252 Glenmore Rd built for a Thomas Cox (1840-1907). The houses were christened Hobartville (No. 250) and Clifton (No. 252).

We hope Mr Cox would be pleased with the way this beautiful grand home looks today.

GLENMORE RD HOUSE

Designer: CM Studio

Builder: BAU Group Construction

Stylist: Alexandra Gordon

Photographer: Prue Ruscoe