Built with Brickworks: Concrete Blonde by Carter Williamson Architects.

Sydney’s Inner West suburb of Annandale is known for its history, character and nostalgic vibes of the picturesque wide streets, beautiful parks, ornate architecture and heritage homes.

In 2014, Carter Williamson Architects were recruited to transform a narrow heritage semi into a gathering place for their clients’ family and friends, while creating a peaceful sanctuary for the residents. The home needed to block out the noise from nearby roads and planes flying overhead, and honour the kitchen as the main heartbeat where conversations take place and special connections are made.

Carter Williamson set out to transform a tight 5-metre-wide block into a home that balances practicality with a circulation sequence that sprinkles a little bit of magic.

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“Concrete Blonde is an architectural jewellery box,” explains Ben Peake, Associate at Carter Williamson and Lead Architect on the project. “The house unfolds and reveals itself from a tight 5m wide heritage facade with a south-facing yard into a generous, light-filled, and warm home.” Inside, warmth is expressed through earthy tones and natural materials, with natural light captured through the skylights and the courtyard well.

An arresting curved linear void is the hero of the new extension. It sits above the living area and carries northern light from a high window deep into the interior. “We often use skylights and voids to deal with the challenges of planning and less than ideal orientations,” says Peak.

The living space flows into the kitchen and dining area, with sliding glass doors visually dissolving to connect the interior with the rear courtyard designed in collaboration with Landscape Architect Melissa Wilson. These four spaces merge into a seamless indoor-outdoor space – the new heart of the home.

“To facilitate light, a tile-lined and plant-filled courtyard is the mediator between the homes’ living and private spaces,” says Peake. One side of the courtyard addresses the main living area, while the other brings light to the bathroom and stairwell.

Upstairs, the main bathroom, located in a space that was once a bedroom, contains a hidden laundry and expected individual functions like the toilet, basin and shower. Each one was subdivided into micro-spaces and celebrated with curved tiling alcoves. “These small gestures hug you as you use the space, diving the large room into smaller areas,” explains Peake.

The home’s robust palette is a direct response to the client brief, which called for a no-nonsense interior that felt warm and inviting. “They wanted polished concrete, exposed brick, natural timber and stainless steel to feature within the home, but wanted to keep a feeling of elegance and clever detailing,” says Peake.

Concrete and Bowral Chillingham White bricks feature extensively in the new extension alongside custom timber furniture. The Tasmanian oak kitchen cabinet becomes a bench seat for the dining area, while the full-height mint green cabinetry compliments the dark-green leather upholstery. “The greens through Concrete Blonde are a nod to the native gumtrees swaying in the backyard, the homes former kitchen colour, and memories of our clients extended family homes in Greece,” says Peake. The dining table is a collaboration between Carter Williamson and Will Brennan, an Orange-based furniture designer.

Carter Williamson believe that good architecture is the result of a genuine collaboration between the architect, the client the builder (Andrew Burton Constructions), and honouring everyone’s ideas. Their primary challenge to create a generous, light-filled home on a narrow block with a south-facing backyard, while maintaining the heritage exterior, certainly wasn’t the easiest of briefs. The team rose to the occasion by delivering a home that utilises every inch of available space to its advantage, with nuances that punch well above the property size. A home that’s equally a vivacious space for social gatherings and a serene sanctuary treasured by the clients.

For further insight into Concrete Blonde by Carter Williamson, watch the above video with principal Sean Carter, and read on for our quick chat with Lead Architect Ben Peake. Boom!

Hey Ben, how did Carter Williamson become involved with this project? What was the key element of the client brief?

Our client, Irene, gave us a call in 2014 after living in the home for a few years and knowing what worked and what needed to change.

‘Do it once and do it right’. That was the attitude our clients brought to the project.

What’s your favourite thing about this project?

The curved void light well is a highlight of the home. It has a functional purpose of delivering northern light into the plan, but it also provides a connection between the two levels of the home. However, it’s the play of light thought the day and changing seasons that make it special.

What was the most challenging aspect of bringing this project to life? Can you tell us about any obstacles you encountered and how did you overcome them?

The main challenge was from the pattern of development and orientation of a small site. We had to demonstrate through the Development Application, that we could develop the site with an appropriate amount of impact onto adjoining properties, and setup a pattern for future development by the adjoining terraces.

We note that concrete is the hero material used in this home, but what role did brick play in the design development for this project? How did you go about selecting the format/ colour and so on?

The original terrace is made in brick… deep red pointed bricks which needed a bit of restoration. The new bricks, Bowral Chillingham White, continue the use of material on the site and support the idea of ‘do it once and do it right’. They provide a bright, robust, and warm palette to the home.

We often use bricks in our work with existing buildings within Heritage Conservation Areas. A palette of raw, robust, long lasting, and beautiful materials see cost and embodied energy amortised over a long life-span without compromising a high level of detail.

Were there any additional benefits in working with Brickworks?

We often work with Brickworks, and find their staff really supporting, and people who understand architecture. They have also been a great support to the profession through COVID-19 by providing online CPD and networking opportunities.

What aspect of this project are you most proud of?

This project was a real collaboration with the Carter Williamson Studio, with the client and the ideas and stories they brought to the project, and with the builder who we have worked with on a number of homes.

Would you have done anything differently?

We are considering increasing the skylight aperture. It was an idea our client had towards the end of construction, but we have all decided to leave it for a year before reconsidering going back to council.

Are the clients’ happy with your execution? How do they use the space?

Yes, they have sent us a few photos recently of enjoying their home and watching the play of light change with the season. Including, a rainbow ray of light on the ground floor.

Are there any other interesting project facts you could share with us?

The client arranged for a collection of glass marbles to be placed into the ground floor slab during the concrete pour. The slab was then polished to reveal the brightly coloured glass marbles pieces alongside the earthy colours of the river pebble aggregate.

This Yellowtrace Promotion is proudly created in partnership with Brickworks. All related thoughts and ideas reflect our genuine opinion. Like everything we do at Yellowtrace, our sponsored content is carefully curated to maintain utmost relevance to our readers.

[Images & video courtesy of Carter Williamson. Photography by Katherine Lu. Styling by Julie Niass.]