About

Ocean House.

ArchiPro Project Summary - Contemporary single-level home in Blue Bay, designed for optimal views and outdoor living, featuring a unique floor plan, concrete and timber finishes, and thoughtfully zoned spaces for family gatherings.

Title:: Ocean House
Architect:: Fabric Architecture
Category:: Residential/; New Builds
Building style:: Contemporary
Photographers:: Luke Butterly

This new single level house was designed for a couple moving to Blue Bay, close to The Entrance on the NSW Central Coast. Challenged by overlooking from large abutting houses, this irregular-shaped site also came with a caveat: a single storey dwelling that wouldn’t detract views from a neighbouring property. Fortunately, there was a small window of opportunity on the 700-square-metre site that offered the possibility of an unimpeded view of Blue Bay – hence the floor plan was ‘cranked’ to allow views from the living areas, the main bedroom and ensuite. The dining area, bordered by the swimming pool, is located at the ‘knuckle’ of the floorplan. Although this house was purposefully designed for an older couple, the brief included three bedrooms (including the main bedroom) together with a study. This was to allow for visiting children and grandchildren.

Elevated on a sandstone plinth, the Ocean Parade house is constructed in timber, glass and, importantly for the client, concrete (the client is a concreter). So, there’s a concrete cantilevered terrace that creates a sense of ‘floating’ and also concrete floors feature extensively throughout this home, juxtaposed with timber-battened ceilings and feature walls to add softness and texture. And as a nod to its location, this design includes a few curvaceous interior walls, with low built-in banquette-style seating wrapping around from the kitchen through to the dining area. The tiled ensuite to the main bedroom is also curved, a contrast to the slightly boomerang-shape conceived for the living areas.

Although this house is surrounded by large homes, it benefits from its strategic planning along with the change in level of the site. One literally descends to reach the front door, but at the same time generous outdoor terraces either side allow for both transparency through the home and views of the bay, along with outdoor conditions that respond to both more exposed and protected environments.

This is a relatively spacious home for a couple, but it’s been thoughtfully zoned to allow it for the house to be used in its entirety or for when the owners are here on their own. It’s both a permanent abode and a welcoming home for family and friends. And the only view of the neighbouring properties is from the long driveway that forms part of this subdivision.

Builder: Mennie Builders

Photos: Luke Butterly

Structural: PBCE Consulting

Renders: Pair Studio

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Professionals used in Ocean House

Fabric ArchitectureArchitects

About the Professional

Project Portfolio

Fabric Architecture is a contemporary design studio located on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia. We focus on Architecture and design - from buildings to public space, to small scale bespoke furniture design.

Fabric was founded on the belief that Architecture, no matter how large or small, is not a matter of style or trend but an ability to create social interaction and help shape an individuals experience in this world, both in the larger context right down to one’s tactile experience in their immediate surrounding environment. It is throughout this experience that perceptions are altered, building types are re-imagined and new ways of experiencing architecture realised.

We work inclusively with our clients: to work up an open brief, to imagine all possibilities, to open dialogue for collaborative problem solving and to discover methods for providing intentioned yet specific design solutions to real needs. We feel the most successful projects have both an openness and specificity, so that change may occur but the fundamental ideas remain intact. We seek to create buildings that make intuitive sense at every scale, from the holistic notions of site planning, down to the tangible experience of the touch of a material.

Our approach to Architecture in a constantly changing digital age is all inclusive; with social, practical, economical and environmental issues integrated within the design process. We consider Architecture to be a process of dialogue and we involve selected experts and consultants, across multiple disciplines, in every stage of the design process.