00:01This apartment was built in 1926 and was originally designed for the jockeys who
00:06worked around the corner at Randwick Racecourse. This included a lot of
00:10original fixtures and fittings such as brass work and terrazzo stone tiles.
00:15This apartment is the first owned home of myself and my husband Josh and we
00:19share it with our little dogs Billy and Remy. It was very important to preserve
00:25the natural character of this building. That's what drew us to the space in the
00:28first place. The natural light surrounded by the timber sash windows led into the
00:32heritage nature of the building and that along with some other fixtures and
00:36fittings really encouraged us to stay in an art deco style interior.
00:46This project was designed for us to work functionally today but we were also very
00:49mindful of how it could work in the future for small families. This
00:54apartment's internal footprint is just over 50 square meters. The existing
01:00ceilings in the living room and bedroom space are a real feature throughout the
01:03apartment. This was something that we fell in love with immediately when walking
01:07through the space. The layout has retained its original configuration except for the
01:12removal of a 500 mil thick wall in the kitchen dining space. This has allowed us
01:16to add in over three times the amount of storage and integrated laundry as well as
01:20some new appliances. By creating a neutral palette between the floor wall and ceiling
01:26it allowed us an opportunity to put in some bold colours and really make the
01:30brass fixtures the highlight of the space. The furniture within the living room is
01:35again of a very neutral palette allowing the character of the space to speak for
01:40itself. In the kitchen space we removed the 500 mil thick wall thus opening up the
01:45whole dining and kitchen area. We were able to raise the floor not only to get all of the
01:50plumbing work across to the laundry space but this also created a zone of
01:53demarcation. We've emphasised this zone as a separate area to the rest of the
01:58apartment by going with a different floor finish seen in the grey floor tile as
02:02well as accentuating this step by adding a brass trim to the front of the step.
02:09The main functional requirement of this space was to fit in as much storage as
02:13possible within the kitchen. We've included a full-size induction cooktop and
02:17oven within the space. This leads into an integrated microwave cavity as well as an
02:22inclusion of a brand new laundry space. This laundry space has a continuation of
02:27the engineered stone bench top so that we can include all of our appliances in
02:31this area as well.
02:37Next to this is an integrated fridge freezer as well as a cleverly concealed
02:41pantry. This pantry is against a wonky wall which proved a real challenge for the
02:46joiner but has maximised the storage space within the kitchen.
02:53Opposite the pantry is our dining zone featuring our custom banquette seat. This
02:58stone top continues from the bench top down into a waterfall onto the top of a
03:02custom designed upholstery unit. The back piece is hung off the wall rather than
03:07connected to the base which creates a sense of lightness by negative space.
03:12Additionally, we have a lot of storage underneath this which is always helpful in a small apartment.
03:18The finishes throughout the kitchen design have been carefully considered to tie in with
03:22those original features which we first fell in love with. One of my favourite
03:26features in this apartment design is the brass shelving over the sink. The
03:31continuation of brass handles as well as a brass tap have been left unsealed so that they
03:35can gradually patina with age. The pink splashback tiles tie in with the pink terrazzo floor steps
03:41upon the entry to the apartment unit. The sliding glass door proportions have been
03:46designed so that when they're opened it completely conceals the exhaust unit and
03:51when closed again creates a very seamless pattern which continues up into the
03:55linear bulkhead. This fluted glass is a tie back to the art deco nature of the
03:59apartment design. We kept the original bathroom door but changed the mechanism
04:05from a swing pivot door into a concealed sliding door thus creating more
04:09circulation within the bathroom. One of the main features within this bathroom is
04:15how much storage has been considered and added into the room. Not only do you have a
04:20typical vanity which includes a large pullout drawer, an overhead mirrored
04:24shaving cabinet and some low storage underneath and also the addition of the
04:29brass shelf it creates a long slimline look continuing from the entry leading
04:34all the way into the bath area. The inclusion of a bath within the space was
04:39not only a huge win for myself but also for future young families. To get a bath
04:44within this tiny 1.4 metre wide bathroom area we had to cut a hole in the
04:49living room wall and feed the bath into the space. The layout of the bedroom is
04:56very simple maximizing the use of the floor space. The integration of full
05:00height joinery conceals our wardrobe. Because we have a lot of natural light
05:06in the bedroom and sunroom space we've been able to do the black floor trims, the
05:10black skirting, the black window frames as well as a black feature artwork to
05:15create a much more moodier interior scheme. The original French glass doors lead
05:22into the sunroom from the bedroom space. The sunroom is a dual purpose room which
05:28serves as an office, a plant nursery and as well as another casual zone. The
05:33shelving in the sunroom has been directly mounted to the walls which
05:35maximizes the floor space. The daybed there is a full-size single bed which
05:41could be pulled out into a double bed if we have any guests staying over. When it
05:45comes to small space design, Strut Studios philosophy is that it has to be all
05:49about function and pairing that also with comfort. We've included a low back sofa
05:54which allows the visual connection between the living space and the
05:57kitchen to remain. By keeping this sofa low and on the ground it's quite heavy in
06:02its aesthetic but balancing that with the grey toned fabric it blends into the
06:07grey wall seamlessly. All of the table units have skinny metal legs on them which
06:12creates as much visible floor space as possible in the zones. We've changed this
06:17design philosophy slightly by using white floorboards, white ceilings and grey
06:21walls. The white ceilings and floors also elevated the rooms thus maximizing the
06:26appearance of the space we have. The design of compartment number three was all
06:31about respecting the heritage nature of this apartment block. Modernizing this
06:36space for our contemporary style of living was easily achieved without changing
06:40the layout too much. Keeping the landscape filled with these beautiful heritage and
06:45art deco style buildings is very important to me and as an interior architect as it
06:49adds to the fabric of our society.
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