00:02I lived here with my partner and our first son for four years before we sold
00:07the terrace to the current owners, Mariam and Mason. A big reason why we
00:14renovated was because of our son Riley. Riley was born a couple of months into
00:21the start of the construction process. The condition that it was in wasn't fit
00:26for anyone, particularly a baby. I'm Adele McNabb, the architect for Riley's
00:34Terrace. Mariam and Mason have since renamed it Magenta House and this is
00:40where they live, set up a home office, library and has become a place where the
00:45community can gather to share ideas, enjoy food and socialise. What I love most
00:54is that they're not trying to keep it exactly how it was. They've just embraced
00:58it for what it is and I couldn't have thought of anyone better to have lived here.
01:03Yeah.
01:10The terrace is on Gadigal land, Sydney, in the inner city suburb of Redfern.
01:20The original terrace was built in the 1900s. It was a late Victorian workers cottage in a once
01:27industrial area. As we started the construction process the house was in a
01:33lot worse state than we imagined. There was asbestos found, the ceiling and the
01:39floors were falling through. The only natural light that came through was from
01:43the front window and a little tiny door on the side. When I was pregnant with
01:49Riley, I fell down half of the stairs because they were so steep. Upstairs was
01:55very compact. We used one room as a bedroom and then another bedroom for the
02:01wardrobe because it was so small.
02:06The main inspiration came from a sense of transparency and connection to what's
02:13found in the Redfern area. Sort of this, you know, raw textural materiality to the
02:20concrete floors and the hardwood timber windows and the lime rented walls and I
02:27think that's sort of reflective of what we find in the area.
02:32We lived here for about three years prior to the build and we picked up on what
02:38worked and didn't work with the property. The dining room was converted into the
02:45kitchen. The central courtyard enabled natural light to filter into every single
02:50space of the house and we had the rear laneway building at the very back. The
02:55spiral staircase was a great alternative to the very steep ladder style. Having to
03:02come downstairs to the back of the house in the middle of the night to go to the
03:05bathroom just didn't work for us. We felt the bathroom upstairs made a lot more sense.
03:12With the front of the terrace, more or less it's been kept intact. The inclusion of an organic
03:18shaped wall light by ceramicist and friend Tanika Jealous sets a vibe. She came up
03:24with that design just for Riley's Terrace. When you come through the front door you
03:30step into the sitting room. We've got a soft linen curtain that envelopes that space.
03:38The original design was to be a sitting room and it later became our son Riley's bedroom when
03:45he was old enough. With how Maryam and Mason use the space now they've converted it into
03:52a beautiful library and study space. The arch between the sitting room and kitchen was a lot
04:00wider but it meant that we couldn't fit you know a cot or a sofa so we actually reduced the
04:06size of that
04:06arch to make that space more user-friendly. With the width of the site being three meters,
04:14having that view connection from the front door to the courtyard just expands the area visually.
04:22Coming through the arch into the kitchen you've got a central island bench. It's a space where we
04:29gathered for dining, cooking. The stone used is called golden spider. The stone breaks up the simplicity of
04:38the surrounding materials. The island bench tapered off to give way to the staircase and it just gives
04:46a softness and draws you into the space. While we lived here my partner and I sat on the outside
04:56of the
04:57island bench top and my son was in a high chair on the end. We've salvaged that low hanging pendant
05:05from a local second-hand shop. The cupboard fronts and splash back and the bench top are all in the
05:13same laminate finish. The laminate to the right hand side behind the cooktop actually conceals a lot of
05:22plumbing, electrical, you know everything is within that space there. Rather than having a solid cupboard
05:31right up against the windows we've got these open style shelves that means that there can be cookbooks,
05:38sculptures, glassware. The windows were inspired from the combi style safari windows. When you've got
05:48those awning windows open you can feel like you're cooking outside. I'm not a massive cook but because
05:54it was such a enjoyable experience cooking in the space it meant that I wanted to spend more time in
05:59the kitchen. Regardless of the weather you can open up the awning windows and you've got a protected
06:06space from the rain. In an informal setting we often just ate casually on the bench outside with our son
06:15walking around the courtyard. The courtyard was the old kitchen and bathroom. The main reason that we
06:24challenged that was to bring that natural light into the kitchen and the laneway building. I know
06:29that Merriam and Mason now use it as an outdoor dining space. The outdoor shower is a wonderful way
06:39to cool off on a hot summer's day. The WC to the rear laneway building hovers out from underneath that
06:48upper roof. You know if no one else was at home you didn't have visitors you could leave the bathroom
06:54door open and have the outdoor shower connected with the toilet and basin. We set up the rear laneway
07:02building as a home office but also as a sitting living room and when we had friends and family come
07:10to stay we had a small studio with a bed set up and they could use the little kitchenette with
07:17the sink
07:18at the back. Merriam and Mason use the space as a DJ booth. The windows across the laneway building were
07:29designed to maintain privacy from the pedestrians and the cyclists that go by while bringing in natural
07:36light to the studio space. On the rear facade there's cedar timber cladding and that conceals the storage
07:44at the back of the laneway. I suppose the timber gives a softness to that rear laneway.
07:52From the kitchen there's a spiral staircase that leads you to the upper floor and it has a skylight
07:58the same diameter it's a staircase that washes natural light down onto the upper floor and onto
08:05the kitchen level as well. At the top of the staircase you have a landing with storage to one side
08:14the design of that cabinetry is for it to disappear so that's why you've got a push-catch
08:19detail for the door that opens out into the storage space.
08:24There's a door that's used to conceal the laundry and can be used as a door for the bathroom so
08:30that
08:30you don't need to double up on having two doors in the one location. The idea for the upper floor
08:37space
08:38was that it was a retreat for my partner and I. We often didn't use the door to the bathroom
08:43it was
08:44only when there were guests over that we would use that door. The layout of the bathroom was designed in
08:51such a way that you could make use of the views out through the window from the bath but then
08:57you've
08:57got the privacy with the shower and toilet on the other side of the room. In the shower and toilet
09:04space
09:04there's a low shelf that conceals the plumbing below and the low wall on the bath side acts as storage
09:12for
09:12anything you might need for the bath.
09:16The vanity is a custom double stone sink and we've made it shallow enough that it doesn't feel
09:23like it takes over the space of the bathroom but we've got the length in the space to have the
09:29two sinks and within the cabinets there's power points so that you can plug in your toothbrush your
09:37hairdryer and it's all concealed within those custom cabinets. There's a pocket door that separates the
09:46bedroom from the rest of the first floor level. The bedroom wardrobe is fully integrated from floor to
09:55ceiling to maximise the storage space. Inside the wardrobe we've got a fixed robe rail and then above
10:02that we've got a pull down hanging system to utilise the bedroom ceiling height. There's drawers within the
10:09cabinetry for general storage and then a shoe shelf at the bottom on both sides. There's a large paper
10:17pendant that gives a soft glow to the room and two side lamps that's used for night reading.
10:26From the bedroom there's double glass doors that open out to a balcony and the double doors are
10:32actually original and that balcony's been fully rebuilt with black butt timber. We actually just
10:40use the balcony to get natural airflow into the bedroom. It just brings us so much joy to know that
10:49Maryam and Mason have such a passion for the property and have brought it into this whole new life.
10:57We've definitely maintained a relationship over the years. You know we do architecture tours once a year
11:04together and yeah it's a great way to reconnect. They've really made it their own so yeah I love that.
11:13But I know I don't think that what you would do.
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