Redesigning a Californian bungalow with a contemporary addition for a growing family, Adam Kane Architects set out to maintain as many features from the period home as possible, while ensuring their work remained sympathetic to the original character. Inspired by the insight he had through meeting with his clients in their existing home, Adam understood their clean, bright and tidy aesthetic with a simple minimal palette. “Everything was very ordered and had its place,” he says.
This insight informed his vision, beginning from the outside, with the extension’s concrete render exterior. Inside, a refined material palette transcends the entire home, with polished plaster connecting the ensuite and splash-backs, while a white concrete aggregate floor flows effortlessly through the stone-coloured walls and floating white staircase. The grooved painted joinery in the kitchen conceals the walk-in pantry, fridge and linen cupboard, while the powder room mirrors the joinery unit in the living area, creating a consistent dialogue between spaces.
The master suite, a guest bedroom, home office, and laundry now lie in the original home while in the new minimalist cube, with the children’s bedrooms and a new bathroom, complemented by a second living space now upstairs.
The open plan kitchen with a statement kitchen island bench in white marble alludes to the immersive serenity that fills the home. This area is framed by large, glazed openings that diffuse the boundary between inside and outside, with the living and dining space flowing effortlessly into the Nathan Burkett Landscape Architecture garden. The interior palette and landscape work together rather than compete; with the greenery lending vibrance to the pared-down spaces.
