Malvern East.

From the exterior, the black front gate and refreshed white façade of the villa hide a transformation inside. A self-described ugly duckling, with tinges of 1960s villa, has been transformed into a cohesive, light-filled family home that embraces the clients’ love of cooking and collecting.

With an appreciation for the villa’s good bones and the client’s bowerbird tendencies, the floorplan was able to re-interpreted, to take better advantage of light and garden surrounds. A key priority was to open up the living spaces and invest in a new kitchen that better articulates the chef who lives here.

A new relationship with the outside through picture windows and glazed doors, sees the original small, dark and disconnected kitchen/dining area reborn, with the kitchen now bathed in sunshine rather than artificial light.

The contemporary design features a muted palette of deliberately layered natural materials, that allows the client’s collections to resonate rather than overwhelm in the space. Objects and art are repositioned, rehung and rejuvenated through integration of the collections into the interior concept.

The love of natural materials is expressed through handmade terracotta tiles, the use of rattan, timbers and select pieces of marble in the kitchen, ensuite and powder room and a steel glazed entry wall. Custom joinery continues this handmade story; making the home feel as if it has been there a long time, gathering history and memories, like the art and furniture that occupies the spaces.