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00:00just bricks and mortar. It's also about dreams and aspirations, design and execution,
00:07making memories and mistakes. Ultimately, it takes more than building a house to create
00:13a home. Join us as we go beyond the build.
00:30On this episode, strap in for one of the wildest renovation rides imaginable. Unexpected setbacks,
00:42spiralling costs, frustrating delays and many design challenges along the way. All in a
00:49day's work for Dave and Jane Franklin.
00:54They're inside dogs, pretty much on the bed, on the couch, anywhere they feel.
01:00They want to have a snooze.
01:02Let's wind the clock back to 2019. Billy Eilish's bad guy topped the charts. TikTok was gaining
01:08popularity and Richmond had just won their 12th premiership. Moods were high.
01:13We're renovating. We've done so many renovation shows, so we thought, why not? Let's do our
01:18own house.
01:19Dave and Jane purchased this house in 2007 and from that time on, they've embarked on a
01:25renovate-as-you-go odyssey using whatever materials Dave would have left over from his
01:30jobs.
01:30When we did start this house, we didn't have a lot of money, I suppose, when we started
01:34doing it and it was built of leftovers from jobs. So, as you can see, it looks like a
01:38patchwork quilt.
01:39The rooms are tiny. The kitchen is really, really small.
01:43To be honest, she hates it. It was either do the house or get a new husband.
01:46The house has served this growing family well, but it looks and sounds like the family might
01:52have outgrown it.
01:53It's got to be done. It's tied. We want a great house. We want a great family home.
01:57And you know what? I'm sick of doing these amazing pools and backyards and front yards
02:01for everyone else, so I want one myself.
02:05Like, we live in Black Rock Village and we're the village idiots.
02:08Yeah.
02:10Black Rock is an affluent bayside suburb about 18 kilometres southeast of the Melbourne
02:16CBD. Known for its natural beauty, fine dining and luxury homes, it's a sought-after
02:22suburb that residents love to call home. The median house price in Black Rock is $2.4 million.
02:38What would have been fitting in the early noughties with its grey render and wrought iron fence,
02:42along with the thrown-together kitchen, now looks dated and very tired. The walls are
02:48literally caving in. Both Dave and Jane are ready for a change.
02:53I want a different kitchen and possibly a different husband.
02:57They say a builder's house is never finished and with Dave's hefty work schedule, he doesn't
03:07have the best scorecard finishing things at home. Jane's and his future happiness depend
03:14on getting this done. But with the right design, there's potential for an amazing transformation.
03:20And if there's anyone who is up for the challenge and capable of pulling it off, it's Dave and Jane.
03:25Three right there. One of Australia's most prolific landscapers, Dave Franklin has had his finger
03:34on the pulse of landscape design for over 25 years. He and his team have thrived in creating
03:40some of the country's most luxurious and transformative outdoor spaces. Dave's likeable personality has
03:47shone through with his work on popular TV shows such as The Block and Open Homes Australia, where
03:53he showcases some of his most impressive designs. Jane has also gained some renovation experience
04:00taking the interior reins on their last renovation, the family beach house in Phillip Island.
04:06She is once again excited to get creative and transform this home in her own unique style.
04:12Along with their young kids Texan Summer, the family dogs Rodney and Keith, and the many guests
04:17they love to entertain, the Franklins are looking forward to creating a home where everyone has their
04:22space and where everyone is welcome. The design Dave and Jane have settled on will see the living
04:29room extended downstairs, the laundry converted into the wine cellar, a carport add-on and the biggest
04:35change, the walls on the eastern side will be extended to two to three metres on both levels.
04:41Along with using some of the balcony space at the front, the house will gain a whopping total of 15 square
04:48metres, almost doubling the floor space. They also have plans to replace the roof. This will also help
04:54with the overall look they want to achieve. Dave and Jane are going for a kind of Cape Cod nautical thing,
05:01but with their own spin on it. The grey render will be replaced with crisp white weather boards juxtaposed
05:07with black window frames and accents to set it off. The works are extensive. At what stage do you just
05:14knock it down and start again? Their love for the internal spiral staircase is so great that it's
05:22enough for the couple to go through with a complete renovation just to retain it. So the roof is coming
05:27out, the kitchen's coming out, the whole side of the house is coming out another two, three metres wide
05:32enough. It's going to make every room basically bigger. So we're not adding a room, we're just
05:36making every room bigger. The wants and needs are growing and they both have their focus.
05:42Let's talk about the outdoors. It's all about the outdoors for me.
05:47This is Dave's domain and with his reputation on the line, he'll want to get it right. We're on three
05:53different levels here and obviously everyone that's been to this house after a few winds actually
05:57falls down the stairs so we're going to make it one level here okay. That pool's coming out,
06:02new one will come in so we're going to do like a curved pool just create a bit more space. After many
06:07many late nights dreaming of the perfect design and many many alterations, he has settled on what he
06:14thinks will best maximize the space. We've got a packing pool, spa, there's going to be an entertaining
06:20area, you've got a barbecue area and a fireplace that's going to look amazing.
06:28And how long do they give themselves for this extensive renovation?
06:31It is not just like right now we're going to go and renovate this this weekend. This is like
06:35something that's you know normally takes about a year and a half and we're going to try and do it
06:39in six months. Famous last words. Coming up the renovation begins and the obstacles
06:45immediately present themselves. To be honest it's just a it's an absolute nightmare.
06:49We're here in Blackrock Melbourne to follow the renovation of Dave and Jane Franklin's family home.
07:01Dave had a grand plan of wrapping this project up in only six months.
07:08Inside apart from some demolition there's been little progress. So what's been holding them back?
07:14Being an old house we've had a few engineering issues. Every time you start pulling something
07:19down something else hits you again and pushes back another bloody month it seems like. So
07:24anyone who's renovated one of these they'll know the pain that we are through.
07:27Older homes have character, often boasting features like architectural windows and solid plaster walls
07:36that you don't find in many newer buildings. When it's time to renovate though, older houses present
07:43costly challenges that are not so charming.
07:45We've got a concrete balcony here then we've got timber floor. All the joists and bearers are running
07:50the wrong way for our extension going out there. So this is kind of a bit of a mean feat. Yes I would
07:55take the roof off but what's going to support the house? So we take the floor out first. So these are
08:00the questions that we're going through and to be honest it's just a it's an absolute nightmare.
08:07That's not the only obstacle for Dave. They've also found concrete cancer on their upstairs balcony.
08:12As long as we cut it out, fix it, it'll be fine. So yeah that's what I'm trying to tell everyone,
08:17but no let's listen to it. Concrete cancer is when water over time penetrates the concrete causing
08:23the rusting of the reinforced steel. Fixing this will not only be costly but it will also take more
08:30time. On a positive note, Dave's been able to get a hand from very experienced builder Matt.
08:36You want me to start and then you finish it off. You don't get into the top ones.
08:39Matt runs his own construction company and has been a builder to contestants on the block for
08:44multiple series. So he's used to deadlines. Dave will be hoping Matt can provide a block style
08:50finish to this turtle paste renovation. It's a little bit slow going. We've basically started
08:56pulling it apart in bits and pieces, uncovering, trying to expose the bones of the house. There's a few
09:02little surprises. It turns out that some of the floor joists are undersized so we're going to have
09:06to look at beefing them up and making sure everything's legitimate before we do advance
09:11and before we do start piecing it back together.
09:16One area that is progressing is the backyard. The old pool has been removed and works have begun to
09:23prepare for the concreting of the new pool. This is the part of the build Dave has been most excited
09:29about and after many tweaks along the way he's come up with the ideal design. It will sure be a
09:37sight when it's finished. Jane has also started to organise some of her selections for the home
09:42and by the looks of it she's leaning towards some statement tiles. She's also planned out the kitchen
09:48area. We're going for black shaker doors and some timber in it with well because otherwise the black
09:54kitchen will be too overpowering and bronze tubware. At the moment there's a shell in there so I'm
10:00really struggling to find it difficult to picture how it's going to look. One of the hero selections
10:05in this kitchen area is a unique round window dubbed the porthole. So we're doing a big round window
10:12for David's porthole, the pirate. Yeah. So we're going to send him off to sail and waving goodbye.
10:19I'm looking forward to going too. Let's hope the ship hasn't sailed yet.
10:26On the bright side it looks like Dave may have an apprentice in the making.
10:30And he'll need the extra help as the issues with this old house keep compounding.
10:39Everyone's saying pull the whole friggin house down but house has been easy since 1950 and I'm not
10:44doing it. We probably should have pulled it down. Oh come on, get out of here. We've got to start
10:49pulling the roof off next week as well so I mean once we start doing all that then we can start seeing
10:54a lot of action and keep moving with it all. And the roof upstairs is going to be cathedral so it's
10:58going to look beautiful. Six months has passed and we can finally see some progress on site. The
11:09frames are up and the roof is off. The Franklins have been renting around the corner and with the
11:16lease coming to an end Dave started to make some promises he couldn't keep. Every wife's worst nightmare
11:22is that I said the house will be finished in two weeks time. So guess what we're doing? We're shifting
11:28to another rental just for a couple of months. So yeah. Dave and Jane had the engineering completed
11:34however after removing the ceiling and seeing the structure it became evident that the engineering
11:40wasn't adequate for their plans on the upper level. An extensive amount of rectification needed to be
11:47carried out to support the work being done upstairs. So much so that little actually remains of the
11:54original structure. Should have pulled the house down and just built a new one. Almost, almost.
11:59Upstairs the results are worth it though. Coming up that spiral staircase you can see straight out
12:03to the bay. It's highlights like these that are worth taking advantage of. This can be just one big
12:09window. There was an existing window there we've pulled it out we've framed it as big as we possibly
12:13can. Having a roof line that's four plus meters high is you know it just creates so much space. The windows
12:20are a lot taller as well so and there's a big focus onto the bay view here and that's why I'm a lot
12:24calmer because I'm sort of like wow that's going to happen you know. At least someone is feeling calm.
12:28The same can't be said for Jane. She thought she'd be moving in by now. Instead she'll be moving to
12:35another rental. Summer and I are having bets on it at the moment. We're thinking late this year
12:40that it might be finished. David's saying to me June. Don't you know the rule Dave? Under promise,
12:48over deliver. Off-site Dave also seems to have his hands full. We didn't have a holiday and we got
12:55the jump on this year with all our other jobs that are coming through and so we've got a massive
12:59thing going on at the block at the moment. We're building five pools. I've got the Today Show
13:02bushfire relief that's starting next week and we've got you filming us today so taking up our time so
13:07there you go. Right now I see why the renovation might be running behind.
13:17We're back on site at Dave's slow-going renovation where they've fallen months behind schedule.
13:26It's been a year since our first visit so add six months on top of Dave's initial
13:31six-month renovation plan. We're going to try and do it in six months. Jane is frustrated with the progress.
13:37Where are we at? We're at where we were six months ago. When I asked for open plan living
13:43he came to the party. We have open plan living.
13:52I love it. I quite honestly love it. She desperately wants to get moving and start on the interiors
13:59but that still seems like a while away. I'm such an organized person but he won't take the next step
14:04because he's got to get his own organized. Dave seems happy with the progress outside but inside
14:16is another story. The power is out. The roof looks like we can get that on soon so steel guy's been
14:22here today. The pressing issue for Dave will be getting the roof on. Once that's completed the rest
14:28of the build will advance. I can't do much more until the scaffold's got to come down and get
14:32the render done because otherwise start doing finishing touches and it's only going to get wrecked.
14:40As winter comes so does yet another perilous setback. Coronavirus cases in Victoria have jumped again.
14:48The world is reeling from the impact of COVID. Residential building has been deemed essential
14:54allowing Dave's renovation to press on. Yeah whilst we can work it's it's good so that's pretty much
15:01the only thing we can do. Looks like lockdown has actually been a blessing for this project.
15:07Extensive work has been completed on the balcony areas. The Cape Cod vision is starting to take shape
15:12in the form of the weatherboard cladding. All the windows have been installed and the roof is on
15:19and it looks spectacular. Outback they've completed the decking. Although progress has been made it's
15:29still a long way off being a home. I wonder how the timeline is tracking. Yeah good. No maybe. No I've
15:38got to be in this Christmas. It can't be you know 2022. You know if we can shift in on Christmas day I'll do it.
15:49A week out from Christmas and although there is some noticeable progress the Franklins are indeed
15:59not in for Christmas. I'm surprised we're not going to put a lift in this house. By the time we move in
16:03we're going to be in our 70s. I don't find that funny. It is.
16:10Further COVID restrictions have limited Dave to having only five people on site at a time.
16:15delaying the build by months again. I can tell you right there our Christmas holidays will be Jane.
16:21Jane will be here. Jane will be down the beach. Oh no I'll be here because I've got a style of
16:26the house so it's going to be very it's going to be very very busy for us. On the upside the outdoor
16:32area is really starting to take shape. I can't wait to get in that port it's amazing. You've done something right.
16:39What they have done is re-engineer the carport with the plan to create a series of brick arches
16:48on top of the feature posts. Come off this line through here. Do another arc, another arc and then
16:54a big arc and that's going to frame out the front door. It's a big move this far out but you know are we
17:01going to get done? Hell yeah. Inside there's been some progress. They've carried out all the electrical
17:07and plumbing, the walls have been sheeted and they've pieced together a statement cellar out of
17:12reclaimed bricks. I kind of like the old brick here so we actually pulled out the newspaper that was
17:19from 1960 so basically I put the newspaper in a frame and put it up on there so we're going to actually
17:24leave that old school thing so because all the house is going to look new and we'll make sure that
17:29I'm just not the only old thing in here. Today on site they're rendering the exterior and installing
17:34the windows and doors. Something they're both excited about is the very impressive front door.
17:40We've got a new front door that's going in. Oh yeah amazing. I'm so happy about the front door.
17:47Being a pivot door it will provide a grand entrance but will also provide some practicality.
17:52The last door that we have there I think is 850 wide so this is going to 1200. That's quite a big opening for us.
17:58So we sort of need it now. Walked into that one Dave. To get Jane back on his side he wants to show
18:08her something he knows she'll like. The walk-in wardrobe. It's massive. It's massive. So you can like...
18:15Is that what you're doing with the wardrobes? Well it will be because I've never had a walk-in wardrobe before so it's just amazing.
18:25No I'm really really excited because um I think now we've got to the final detailing now and I think once
18:31the doors are on the plaster's been done it's really just us fine tuning really isn't it? Yeah. Just getting the big things in like the kitchen, the floors and some window dressings but it's we're on the way home.
18:44Yeah I'm on track to be right. It's actually two years in May. It's two years in May that we'll be right.
18:48Well no one's counting time. I'll count. I mean no one's. You don't need to count. As they say it's the journey.
19:01Dave's family home renovation is finally making some solid progress. Considerable work has been
19:10done on the exterior and interior. Dave's landscape design has been slowly coming together through the
19:16build process but now it's time to put the foot on the pedal. With such an impressive house in the making
19:22Dave will want impressive landscaping to suit and one of the heroes in this area is the feature olive tree.
19:28Olive tree. Boom. Dave will be using this large olive tree as the centerpiece along with these mature
19:37grass trees he's already planted to frame the pool area. We won the block with it so so if it's a winner
19:43there it can certainly be a winner in my backyard. But is the olive tree too big? When you're at the farm it
19:50doesn't look as big. Big is better isn't that what they say? So but yeah now we've got to I'm just going to ring
19:56the guy to make sure I can cut it down a little bit so I can fit it in. Can I cut knock off a little
20:01bit of that? Is that going to be a problem? Okay all right. They'll be planting the tree in this raised
20:07planter area. The concern is that if the roots are too big it will put excess force on the steel
20:13causing it to fail and start bending. Luckily Dave's got a wealth of experience to draw on.
20:19So a little bit of creative horticulture we'll get the tree in. Five men strong they lift the heavy
20:26olive tree into Dave's digger, transport it to the planter box and lift it off.
20:36As you can see it's hard work but you can see that it's worth it
20:40the moment the tree falls into place. Hey there we go.
20:48Honestly we've kind of worked our design around having this beautiful olive tree here. As I keep
20:52saying chalky colours always give you a great looking garden.
21:00It's a new day and with it comes another massive inclusion to the backyard. One of the major features
21:06in this backyard is the glass that's going into the spa here. I've got my mate coming down from
21:10Queensland. He's come down today to help me put the glass in. I've probably been waiting for this to
21:14go in for probably about four to six months to be honest so today's a good day. A rather painstaking
21:20process. First they have to hook it up to the crane by hand. Four guys wasn't enough so one of the
21:27cameramen had to jump on one end of the 600 kilo pane of glass. Once it's strapped in the crane operator has to
21:35slowly guide it over the neighbour's fence where Dave and his mate will delicately lower it into
21:41position. Slow and steady they get the job done. That went fine. It's in.
21:51Jane has arrived to check up on progress. She's clearly pretty happy with the work being done at
21:56the back and something that also should put a smile on her face is the work being done inside
22:01as her huge walk-in robe is being installed.
22:07As well as some detailed tiling work.
22:11She's desperate to start filling the house with her furniture pieces.
22:15I've been going to sleep every night thinking where I'm going to place everything. I'm really
22:19excited because I like decorating and placing items in the correct spaces. It's going to take me a while.
22:27David said it'll take me a day but clearly he does nothing with the inside. But it'll take me a bit
22:32longer but that's okay. We've got heaps of time once we move in. I just really want to get in.
22:38Not long now Jane. A month later and 18 excruciating months past their deadline, Dave and Jane have
22:45brought Tex to site to show him what they've been busy working on.
22:48Will you have met these the last time you hear Tex? Oh maybe.
22:53I reckon the build has been going for what felt like my whole life. I'm looking forward to seeing
22:58your bedroom now. I am as well. Wow. Oh. You haven't seen this? No I haven't seen it. Oh it looks good
23:06doesn't it? My favourite thing is definitely in my room where there's a little cubby up there and there's
23:13a little platform and it's like a kind of a bed. I don't know how you're going to get up to your crib
23:17up the top there yet. I've got ways. I've got ways. I could take all my girlfriends to. Oh as if. You're
23:23not going to have girlfriends. Oh my god. Dave also wants to show Tex his sister's room aka the cave room.
23:31Why is it the cave? Because she hides in it all day. This is a pretty cool room though. It is pretty cool. But
23:36she's actually got a non-suite that you don't have and then she's got the outdoor balcony. Yeah. I'd be
23:42trying to swap rooms. Yeah I do but I'm kind of grateful for my room. Then you can have all your
23:45girlfriends out there. If he doesn't have girlfriends he doesn't have girlfriends. His only girlfriend is
23:50the mum of them. I wish I couldn't. Ew mate. With the build time dragging on the family have been staying
23:58at a rental around the corner. The house is set to be pulled down after they move out and it seems as
24:03though the Franklins may be happy to see the back of it. If there's another rental I think
24:08Dave and I will probably be going to the courts. Maybe. When did we start? So we've done 2019,
24:152020, 2021. Car out. Y'all should finish their house.
24:27On a spectacular spring day in Blackrock, Melbourne, architect Sean Lockyer pays a visit to the
24:32Franklins to finally see the finished home after four very long years. Well we're finally here after
24:41four long and arduous years on a project that so many others would have simply given up on. But hard
24:47work and tenacity really does pay off. The Franklins have eventually completed their own hacienda.
24:53With a mix of sweeping arches, a lot of different materials and some playful architectural form,
24:58from the outside there certainly looks like there's a lot going on. But after all this time,
25:02the big question for me is are they happy with the result? And was it all worth it?
25:08It's been a long journey, suffice to say. Very, very, very long journey. Very long journey.
25:23Not that long. It's very long. I don't know what your long is, but my long's very long.
25:29What are you guys thinking about all of that right now? Well one, definitely that we're finished,
25:33okay. Two, I've got Jane off my back now because we have finished. Three, we've got no more bins in
25:40the drive home to park our cars. So there you go. Now obviously at the outset of a journey like this,
25:45irrespective of what style one hopes to build, irrespective of the amount of money one puts into
25:49it or how long one takes to do it, you do this to make an impact on your family and to do something
25:55that your family can enjoy. But how does it all feel for them now that it's all done? Well,
25:59well, again, it didn't take too long. Well, it did take a long time, right? So we had the time to
26:04actually change the design as we were building it. We've pretty much done every room as, you know,
26:13per spec to, you know, our kids, what we like and what we like in our lifestyle, really.
26:20Given that you obviously, you're a designer, you've had a lot of experience, you've had a lot of ideas
26:24that have been going around for a long time. You've got a very strong hand in the interior design and
26:28the materials. You're bringing two strong personalities together in a house where you've
26:33done a limited amount of documentation and then everything else has kind of been organic.
26:38Yeah. Would you do it again? Hell no. There's been a lot of fights.
26:41There's been a lot of fights, a lot of arguments. Hell no.
26:44I do inside, he does outside and he's tried so many times to get inside the house. Yeah.
26:49And we've had so many fights over it, but I always win in the long run. Well, you've got to say,
26:53well, we're both born the same day. Yeah. So, two Gemini's. So, there's a recipe for disaster for
26:58well, for at the start. Yeah. You know, yes, we fought pretty much the whole way through.
27:03Pretty much, yeah. There was not actually one nice fit, you know. I've got through the whole thing.
27:07But, you know, we got there in the end and, you know, do we love the house? Absolutely.
27:11Yeah, it's a beautiful house. So, to do the journey again, I think, to be honest,
27:14and you hit the nail on the head. Yeah. Documentation's everything, being designer. Yeah.
27:18Yeah. There was a lot of blood, sweat from me and tears from David, but we managed to get through it.
27:24Yeah.
27:28Well, look, the hardest thing for me, you know, and you touched on it before, was, you know,
27:31a facade of a house is one thing. That's the first thing that you greet, and that's with the landscape
27:35as well. Yeah. And, you know, it was going to be all Hamptons, as you see, upstairs. And then
27:39I started, probably not watching all those Escapade sort of shows.
27:43Yeah. And Pablo Escobar had all the arches and that, and I thought, well, geez, you know,
27:48that's all right. This was probably pulled down about, I think, at least eight times,
27:55the front facade. Yeah.
27:57So that costs a bit of money to get it right. And look, and again, there's not many houses
28:01like it in this area, and that's why we sort of love the arches and, you know, in design and
28:05landscape. You know, as we always say, arches create space. Yeah. That, eh, and Pablo Escobar had it,
28:10so why not, you know. Well, I've got to tell you, the Escapade is a new reference for me in design.
28:20I know there's a lot going on in the interiors. I can't wait to see
28:24what Jane's done. Yes. Given that your work's almost done outside here,
28:27so if you're happy to show me through, I can't wait to sit. I was going to say,
28:29you know, I can let you inside. Well, let's do it. Let's get in there.
28:33OK.
28:47So we've come up into the middle of what is essentially the old cottage. I'm going to say,
28:50old cottage in inverted commas, because I know lots going on in this roof. But straight away,
28:56what I really like about this space is, as an architect, I hate corridors. I think they're just,
29:00you know, they're dark, they're oppressive, they don't really do anything for the house. And you've
29:04got rid of all the corridors here. You've brought what is the original stair up into the space.
29:08And then you've consolidated all of these spaces. There's obviously an amazing sense of light about
29:13you. You get some views to the beach. And I imagine this is probably quite a strong catalyst in the way
29:18that the whole upstairs has been planned. Yeah. I would have to say, well, this was probably one of the biggest
29:22things that we changed in our design, because in the original house, you could actually touch the
29:26ceiling here. Yeah. Okay. And it was, it was just one corridor through here, small bathroom,
29:32small bedroom there, small bedroom here. Yeah. So now we've managed to get, you know,
29:35three bedrooms up here, but all with, you know, bathrooms as well at the same time. But
29:39the biggest feature that we love is obviously having the six metre ceilings here. Yeah.
29:42And that was probably one of the biggest things that we wanted. Two, we can see some great bay views
29:47up here as well. And yes, that was the original staircase. So that's the only thing we haven't
29:51changed in the house. But we fell in love with the house initially 17 years ago because of the
29:56staircase. Yeah. We loved the staircase, didn't we? There's definitely a sense of cohesion about
30:02the sort of black and white themes. I mean, I love the black floors and the herringbone. I mean,
30:08they're really gorgeous. And you've taken that herringbone through in the marble in the bathrooms.
30:12Everywhere that you can, you've chipped into ceilings and you've kind of opened up spaces
30:18in your son's bedroom. You've got that little sort of bunk niche up at the top, which is,
30:24and all of that I'm assuming you discovered through the build. That didn't exist before.
30:27Yes. 100%. Well, look, we did do it with Summer's bedroom and, you know,
30:31she's got a high ceiling like this. And then poor Texio had this, he's got the smallest room
30:36in the house. And I thought, oh, all right, let's give him something. So we thought, well,
30:39he's young enough and he's got his friends come over and that's why, yeah, we sort of got that
30:42little mezzanine, little spot for a bed up in the top there. And it's kind of cool. It makes every
30:46room different. Yeah.
30:52Just to interrupt you just for one second, I did buy that light in Bali and I said to David,
30:57you need to give me a roof that I can put the light in. And so he managed, that's why we did the roof.
31:02Yeah. Yeah. Well, to be honest, if you reverse back, that's the one that cost me heaps.
31:07Yeah. Yeah.
31:10I can't look at that lighting more.
31:16There's some people that will attempt an interior like this and it will feel like they're trying to
31:20do it for somebody else. So they're trying to capture somebody else's vibe. Yeah.
31:23But this does feel like you guys in a really authentic way, which, and I think when one evaluates
31:29design and when one thinks about building houses, you guys are trying to build a family house.
31:33You've got two crazy dogs and, you know, two kids that are really young adults now. And I think
31:39it is a space that really feels like a home. It genuinely does. And I think that's really,
31:44I mean, what the whole point of this is, especially off the journey you guys have been through.
31:47Well, we have to live here, so we want to make it as easy as possible.
31:56After the break, Sean continues the tour.
31:58This is obviously your world. You know, what were you thinking in all of this?
32:02What was I thinking, Sean?
32:16We're in Blackrock, Melbourne to see this spectacular transformation.
32:21It may have taken four years for Dave and Jane Franklin to achieve this,
32:26but the finished product makes it all worth it. Sean continues the tour.
32:33So we're here in the main living space of the house with a beautiful north-facing backyard.
32:37And you've obviously consolidated the dining, the living, the kitchen to create a really nice open
32:42plan space, which makes a lot of sense.
32:43Probably, to be honest, was the hardest part, okay? So just even doing that little bit of extension
32:48just through there, just to get rid of all the hallways. We had to put an I-beam through the
32:53top there, and that was obviously coming in from the top, otherwise we had to feed it through.
32:57So this took a long time. So when we decided to take the whole top of the roof off, it was a lot
33:03easier to crane that in. It was like a rabbit warren really, wasn't it, this house?
33:06Yeah, it was.
33:06It was like you'd walk through the front door of hallways. Like this little room here was our
33:11TV room, but it was only from there to there. A toilet there and a small kitchen.
33:15There used to be the lounge room out on the other side, and that's where the spare bedroom is.
33:19Yeah.
33:19We've kept the original fireplace out there, which has got some nice original stonework
33:23and stuff like that. But our garage, believe it or not, was actually right here, which is
33:27our sort of slash another rumpus room, movie room.
33:31Getting the big things right, having your living spaces open out to the north, particularly here
33:35in Victoria, where you have longer winters than we're lucky to have up in Queensland. You get
33:40all this beautiful light coming through. We're enjoying a day today where you've got
33:44doors open, beautiful light in the space. You've got a lovely connection to all the landscape out
33:48the back, these beautiful olive trees and beyond us. I mean, I think these spaces are working
33:53really nicely. And I think also that your kitchen spaces, you've obviously put a lot of thought into
33:58the functionality of those because you've got the kitchen, laundry, pantry.
34:02That's right, yeah.
34:03We wanted it sort of open plan living out here. And you know, it starts in the kitchen,
34:08you start cooking, you always end up talking to someone. So you know what, you can watch the
34:11footy, talk to someone that's cooking there and end up here where we're sitting right now.
34:18And Sean, what do you think of my porthole?
34:21Well, I wasn't sure whether it was your porthole or Dave's porthole.
34:24It's actually my porthole because I came up with the idea, didn't I?
34:30And what was the initiation of that idea?
34:32To open it up, I just didn't like the squareness, just a normal mirror arm window.
34:37So I wanted it to be a feature. And with David's beautiful planting of his bamboo,
34:41it's actually nice and shady and green and it's nice and it's a different shape.
34:47Let's be honest, we started the craze of round windows.
34:49We did, because I think our next door neighbours have got round windows now too.
34:55Recognising this was a long journey, a lot of things were organic. You know, to me,
34:59it looks like you've kicked a lot of goals here. But when you look at these spaces particularly,
35:03are there any things that you think on reflection you'd be doing differently given the chance again?
35:07Maybe like Dave.
35:11At year one, two, three or four.
35:12That was a little bit too quick though, don't you think?
35:14That's a little bit too quick. I was going to leave it to later.
35:16Look, to be honest, no, it's actually sort of perfect for us, you know,
35:20if we go back through again. The only thing that we would get bored on is that,
35:23you know, it's been a landscape and stuff like that. Everything's finished now.
35:26It's sort of like, you know, you start looking at things and going,
35:29do I like that plant? Should I change it? So, no, I don't want to change it.
35:33We've sort of, you know, customised everything for ourselves and especially downstairs here.
35:37It is definitely different. As you said, it's hard to put a style on it.
35:41I think everyone comes in and either says a well-travelled house or eclectic.
35:48I love what you've done here. You've got silver travertines,
35:51you've got all this beautiful blonde stone, lovely greying natural timbers.
35:55This is obviously your world. You know, what were you thinking in all of this?
35:58What was I thinking, Sean?
35:59What were you thinking? Jane's still wondering.
36:02Yeah, yeah, that's right.
36:04Well, you know yourself, it is probably the hardest thing to design in your own place.
36:07Yeah.
36:07Okay, especially if you're a landscaper and you're doing it as a job.
36:11You know, it started with the pool. This is actually our second pool.
36:13We had an original pool in first.
36:15Yeah.
36:15And the hardest thing, you know, is obviously, you know,
36:17you've got to create rooms outside.
36:19Yeah.
36:19And it isn't the biggest backyard, but it's enough space for me to create,
36:22obviously, a pool zone.
36:24You also need to have a little bit of width between, obviously, the drawers and the pool.
36:27Yeah.
36:27And then come out here.
36:28And this is what I always love is that, you know, through COVID, we had the fireplace,
36:32you had the pizza oven, and then we've got this beautiful sort of seating through here.
36:36We use this fireplace all the time, don't we?
36:38Even in summer, we still use it, because often Melbourne gets colder for night.
36:41Yeah.
36:42Yeah.
36:42So we'll sit around here with a group of friends and with a bottle of red wine and
36:46enjoy the fire.
36:47Yeah.
36:47It's really lovely.
36:50Your point is a very good one.
36:52There's a lot of times people duplicate what they've got inside, outside again,
36:55and they go inside living, dining, outside living and dining.
36:58They cover it and you go, well, why do you need both?
37:00Yeah.
37:00And I think, you know, you guys have been very clever to kind of create these outdoor rooms.
37:05And this is a space that has its completely own character to inside.
37:09It's a completely different space.
37:10Yeah.
37:11With a fireplace and everything, it's got a reason for being that's completely different
37:14to inside, so it pulls you out here.
37:16And I think it's fantastic that you guys are using it year round.
37:20If you don't mind me asking, when you started this process,
37:23you would have had an idea about what you wanted to spend.
37:25Yeah.
37:25And when you finished it, are you happy to share?
37:27I had a budget of five, six hundred thousand dollars, but the real terms is like it was any
37:32day of the week at least one and a half million dollars to spend, you know.
37:35Yeah.
37:35Um, you know, it was a lot more unknowns that we come across.
37:39Yeah.
37:39Again, at the same time, you said earlier on documentation is something that we should
37:42have really looked at a lot more, gone through.
37:44The house evolved a lot differently.
37:47So we've ended up with, well, an eclectic house, something that we love,
37:50well-travelled house.
37:51Yeah.
37:52Well over budget.
37:53Yeah.
37:54Well, that brings me to, you know, the preposition that we put at the beginning.
37:58So it's been a hell of a journey, you know, and congratulations.
38:02I think, you know, you guys have maintained a good sense of humor, which is important.
38:06It's important for building.
38:07It's important for marriage.
38:08Yeah.
38:08But I think to your credit, you know, you guys have stuck to your guns.
38:11Yeah.
38:11You know, you've actually stayed the distance.
38:13You know, we said at the beginning, you know, there are many people that would have
38:17got divorced, abandoned this thing, done something worse.
38:20And I think you've answered the question because you've created a beautiful home for your family.
38:24I don't think there's any question about that.
38:26But do you feel like it's all worth it?
38:28Yeah.
38:29Look, I mean, the marriage or the house?
38:30No.
38:31No, no.
38:32And I think it's very, I think it was worth it.
38:34We do have a beautiful house and we are very happy, aren't we?
38:37Yeah, no, I don't know whether to cry or laugh, but let's just say I'm glad it's the end of it.
38:43And it's not four years, all right?
38:45It's just under three years.
38:46It's five years.
38:46Whatever.
38:47But no, look, no, absolutely really, really proud of it.
38:50Proud of what we ended up with.
38:51And it's a place that we come home and I love being here, you know.
38:54It's got everything there.
38:55And as I said, well, I wouldn't add anything else, but yeah.
38:58The serenity.
38:58The serenity.
38:59The serenity, guys.
39:00The serenity.
39:01As an architect, this is a challenging project for me to comment on.
39:10I like the idea of rules.
39:11I like the idea of establishing decision-making in a hierarchical sense that explores all the
39:17ideas, captures it in drawings, controls the process and gives it to a builder that is
39:21executed in a nice linear fashion.
39:23What Dave and Jane have done here is almost the exact opposite.
39:26They've taken a set of drawings, almost immediately abandoned them,
39:30and then set about making decisions on an organic and incremental basis.
39:35But what they have done is taken their passion, their experience and their knowledge of building,
39:41and they've created it into a genuine family home that reflects their personality
39:46and is authentic to them.
39:48And in the end, they have created a coastal sanctuary for their family.
39:52And I don't know that anything can be much more relevant or meaningful than that.
40:00So I don't just think that's a good idea.
40:07This is a� where I live and can see what they have done here and take a look at.
40:13We are curious to see what they have done here.
40:15The sea flower, we are now passing along with the iceberg,
40:18and we are now passing along with the iceberg.
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