Displaying posts labeled "Stairs"

Our second real estate stalking takes us to Sydney and the inner city suburb of Paddington. It’s no secret that I love a Victorian-era terrace house and although this renovation has taken a decidedly modern turn there are still traditional elements to keep me happy. I’d love to see the bathroom in real life. Part of me loves the glass panels over the original sandstone in the shower but part of me also wonders how well it has been done. Are there dust bunnies gathering on rock ledges or salts frissing out of stone due to niggling leaks? Still it’s a cool idea. Link here while it lasts.

Ah the stuff of dreams. An apartment in the Latin quarter with a view. Not just any view but large windows filled with the Panthéon in all its perfection. Double height living room or should I say salone or even more so library. Then there is the art, the clean lines of the furniture, the sweeping staircase, a simple yet stylish modern kitchen and did I mention those windows and the access to a small balcony?  Yes it is the stuff of Parisian dreams. “Panthéon” by Hélène Van Marcke.

We’re huge fans of conversions here at DTI and this one is….majestic being the first word that comes to mind. That staircase!!!  Believed to have built in the early 1900s, this former brewery cooperage on a tight site in Central London had already been in residential use since the 1990s. By stripping back to the buildings fabric and preserving its original features it was possible to bring a new understanding to its potential. The existing basement was extended laterally to create a large open-plan family living area over which rises a triple height atrium – a space around which much of the accommodation is structured and through which passes a dramatic feature staircase. The vertical extension rises from the top of the building and is occupied by bedrooms and a generous roof terrace with far-reaching roof-top views. To distinguish this extension from the original brick structure a system of patinated bronze cladding panels and glass has been used. By Chris Dyson Architects. (Photos: Peter Landers)

See more of Chris Dyson’s work here, here and here.

I’m stalking in the Melbourne suburb of Northcote today and what is on my real estate radar is this light, bright, family home. The modern renovation and extension takes what is a simple wooden cottage and transforms it into a four bedroom, open plan home with seamless indoor-outdoor living. It’s up for auction with a guide price of $1,800,000 – $1,980,000 AUD. (And yes Australian house prices are still crazy.) Link here while it lasts.

What do you do when you see a grand space with high end finishes, expensive art and covetable “it” furniture? Do you shake your head and say “Well that’s no good for me. I don’t live in a grand old house and can’t afford any of this.” Do you take note of finishes, how art is hung and stairs built to translate them into your more ordinary home? Does a Casa in Venice become just a colour palette? Or is there the urge to be adventurous, to be bold, to seize your design geist and just go with it, whatever it may be?  I may never live in a space like the  Casa in Campo Santa Maria Formosa in Venice by Massimo Adario Architetto but, oh my, it sets my imagination racing.