Balwyn House in Melbourne by Fiona Lynch Design Office.

Balwyn House is the latest residential project completed by Melbourne-based Fiona Lynch Design Studio. The project is a new build for one of the Builders Lynch’s studio regularly works with, Damian & Sonia Baldi and their daughter, where the team at Fiona Lynch were commissioned to design the interiors.

Everything about this home exudes a refined and artistic moodiness, from the stunning jewel-toned palette to the layered use of the highly edited material palette. The house was designed using large concrete panels which were framed and poured on site. These panels received a treatment known as burnish, which creates the textured quality on the concrete surface. The designers worked hard to create cabinetry which would compliment and not fight with the strong concrete surfaces. Aged brass and oak joinery sprayed in 2pac grey finish, and Elba stone from Arte Domus are the only materials used on the project.

Kitchen joinery has been designed to feel as loosely fitted components within the space rather than fixed joinery. With the mass of the concrete walls “we wanted these to breathe and for the kitchen cabinetry to be more like furniture elements than wall to wall cabinetry”, explains Lynch. This approach was taken with all cabinetry in the house.

Rich velvets, floor to ceiling window dressings and over-dyed rugs in emerald, navy and ruby tones create the luxe mood, and are enhanced by a cool palette of hard materials, crisp white paint, silver fixtures and mirrored furniture. Lynch adds warm elements to balance the coolness, evident in oak timber accessories, and raw tan leather furniture.

It’s impossible to look at Lynch’s work, and not be in complete awe of her true master of detailing, and Balwyn House is no exception. Custom-designed joinery in the living space features perfectly proportioned recesses for the television, the fireplace, storage and display of objects. The ceiling was designed with no fixed surface mounted lights but rather recessed pelmets housing the lighting tracks. Throughout the house, floor to ceiling openings act as doorways, giving an overall majestic sensibility to this incredibly calm and solid space.

[Images courtesy of Fiona Lynch Design Office. Photography by Sharyn Cairns.]