Quality Over Quantity: Sydney Art Deco Apartment Sacrifices Bedroom for Quality Living.

In a refreshing take on the typical Sydney real estate mindset, this elegant Art Deco renovation challenges convention by deliberately reducing the bedroom count to create a more spacious, light-filled home. The 84-square-meter apartment in Onslow Gardens in Sydney’s Elizabeth Bay is a poster child of thoughtful subtraction leading to enhanced living. Halleluiah!

I’ve always been intrigued by projects that dare to swim against the current. While most Sydney property owners are obsessed with squeezing in extra bedrooms, this renovation boldly asks: what’s the point of multiple sleeping spaces for a household that only needs one?

Belqis Youssofzay & David Hart of Youssofzay Hart took a measured approach, removing and relocating select walls, doors, and cupboards that had accumulated over the apartment’s century-long existence. These precise interventions have transformed what was once a closed, relatively dark interior into a space flooded with natural light and improved airflow.

The renovation creates a series of fluid living areas—sunroom, study, living, and dining spaces—while also incorporating generous storage solutions. The architectural incisions are deliberately subtle, allowing the apartment’s original Art Deco features to take centre stage.

Each design element engages in thoughtful dialogue with the building’s heritage. Eucalypt-coloured modular D-Tiles complement the original stained-glass bathroom door, while their smooth grids and curves define a bold vanity and create an immersive bathroom environment that references utilitarian mid-century design principles.

The joinery introduces additional curves that echo the ceiling’s circular patterns while strategically extending the apartment’s living and storage spaces. Muted grey-blue kitchen cabinets and speckled Italian terrazzo make subtle connections to the building’s foyer and frontage.

Rather than chasing luxury finishes and fashionable motifs, Youssofzay Hart prioritised everyday functionality through robust, timeless materials—including a specially sanded stainless kitchen bench with a softened finish. Attention to details like surfaces, handles, lighting, materials, and textures elevates the daily rituals.

This harmonious, now spacious apartment seamlessly integrates daily customs, leisure, rest, socialising, and work—proving that sometimes in design, less is absolutely more.

Zero Waste Installation at MCA Inspired by a Painting by Youssofzay + Hart.

Taking inspiration from Vivian Binns’ 1993 painting, Youssofzay Hart extracted the grid overlay and applied it to the installation's framework.

[Images courtesy of Youssofzay Hart. Photography by Hamish McIntosh.]