Annandale

An Inner West Victorian Terrace, flipped on its head, provides a better connection between the living spaces and the secluded urban courtyard. The charming period home has received a thoughtful extension and reconfiguration that thoroughly utilises the sloping site to its full potential. An inverted approach to planning substituted the traditional ‘ground-floor’ entry spaces for more passive spaces such as bedrooms, with the main living spaces on the lower level, responding directly to the client’s way of living. The bathroom that once separated the kitchen from the rear courtyard was moved to the southern side with a more generous footprint and a strategically positioned laundry with direct access to the street adjacent courtyard. An otherwise neglected and disconnected central courtyard has become the heart of the home, accessed through full width bi-fold doors off the new living space, abundant with light from skylights above. The reimagining of this narrow space through considered planning resulted in an improved response to the sites’ natural resources.