Alterations Project of Oliver Residence in Seaforth, New South Wales

This modern house design is the results of an additions and alterations project of Oliver Residence in Seaforth, New South Wales. The renovation project involved important reconfigurations to the existing dwelling, including a new formal entry lobby at the upper level with direct access to the open plan living area, the creation of a new full length deck to the upper level with integrated sun shading, new master ensuite and walk in robe, new bathrooms, general facade upgrades and building remodelling.

The result is a substantial family home with a single design aesthetic that readily accommodates indoor, outdoor living and encourages constant interaction with the phenomenal view.

Warehouse Loft into Private Residence by Garcia Tamjidi

This interesting private residence project is a nice transformation design projected by Garcia Tamjidi from its previous "warehouse loft" located in the city of San Francisco.

The loft maximizes natural light provided by an exterior light court. Designed as a living gallery space, the architecture capitalizes on the openness and optimizes generous display surfaces. The interior stair connecting the ground floor from the loft becomes an artistic focal point and transition from the more public to the more private areas.

Quinta da Serra Restoration by Adam Richards Architects

Adam Richards Architects projected the restoration and conversion of a traditional stone Quinta located in the mountains of southern Portugal. To meet the client’s needs, the home restoration project involves the radical re-ordering of the building’s internal spaces. The house has been comprehensively rebuild and extended, with exterior stonework sensitively restored, and married to a dramatic contemporary design that opens it up to the light an the landscape.



Two narrow strips forming a cross in plan, containing functional elements such as stairs and kitchen equipment, overlap each other across three storeys within the stone box of the main house. These define different sized spaces that contain the principal activities, for living, dining, cooking and reading.

Potrero Hill Residence by Aidlin Darling Design

A mundane 1950's developer house was transformed into a light-filled modern home in this 1,650 square foot urban renovation. Mute stucco facades were opened up with expanses of glass, capturing panoramic views to the west, and intimate gardens to the east. A sculptural interplay of material, light and space extends the perceived and implied volume of the building, making a small home feel spacious and spatially dynamic.



























The picture above shown the Potrero Hill residence image after renovation and transformed into a light-filled modern home, this nice Potrero Hill Residence was designed by Aidlin Darling Design. See his other cool residential project of single story Caretakers Residence on this best house design blog.

Open Box House 2 Ren0vation by Feldman Architecture

This Open Box House 2 is a renovation project of the modern hilltop house that was done by San Francisco based Feldman Architecture. This project is a follow-up to Open Box House that sits next door.

Word from the Feldman architects:
We opened up every aspect of this urban residence to take advantage of its hilltop site and access to the outdoors. Sunlight enhanced the dramatic transformation of this house from an uninspired 2-storey residence into a sophisticated, modern dwelling.



















With eco-friendly principles guiding the design direction, elements that once appeared dark and unwelcoming were given a glamorous new beginning with the introduction of translucent glass kitchen tiles, white oak plank floors, and fold away ground level doors. A roof that peels away to reveal a lively deck provides the final hinge to a remarkable “open box” design. were involved in a total renovation of this modern hilltop house.

Remodel of Capitol hill House by Blip

Image [before remodelling]

This is an extensive remodel of an existing house by Blip Design, with a new penthouse and roof deck . The stairs were opened up and relocated to the center of the house, allowing natural ventilation throughout (there is no mechanical ventilation). A framework mounted atop the penthouse supports an array of photo-voltaic modules, combined with solar hot water collectors.



























Image [after remodelling]

Other ecologically sustainable elements in this project include: wastewater heat-recovery, rainwater harvesting, hydronic radiant floor heat, super-insulated envelope, rain-screen siding. This house appeared in the June 2004 issue of DWELL magazine. It won a 2005 Built Green Design Award.



























Environmental Aspects

This project's most visible green feature is the array of photovoltaic panels and solar-hot-water collectors mounted atop the penthouse roof. The PVs can produce 3,200 kWh of electricity per year, and, with the help of assorted energy-saving strategies throughout the house, they provide a significant portion of the owners' energy needs.

Other notable components of the project include: "smart" whole-house systems monitoring, hydronic radiant-floor heating, rainscreen siding, wastewater heat recovery, rainwater collection for reuse, bamboo flooring, and efficient lighting, appliances, and systems.



























Owner & Occupancy
* Owned and occupied by Ophir Ronen and Io Salant, Individual(s)
* Typically occupied by 3 people, 128 hours per person per week; and 6 visitors per week, 2 hours per visitor per week.

Building Programs
Indoor Spaces: Living quarters (100%)
Outdoor Spaces: Garden—decorative (40%), Garden—productive (40%), Parking (10%), Pedestrian/non-motorized vehicle path (10%)

Fordice Residence by OPA Design

This Fordice Residence was designed by OPA Design for their client who wanted to add two bedrooms and a garage to their existing ranch. They wanted to preserve the existing kitchen and master bedroom suite which they had recently remoldeled. They asked that a curve of some sort be integrated into the design and that the addition not look tacked on, so the challenge was to transform and integrate the existing with the new.


















The solution was a two story addition with a curved roof; a large two car garage below with a new master suite and guest bed and bath above. Much of the existing ranch remained intact. A portion of the existing roof was removed and covered with a taller curved roof, transforming the dimly lit and low ceilinged dining area into a bright double height space suitable for entertaining large groups of friends.














The new structure and the existing imitation stone siding were covered with Milestone, a plaster like product, and cement board panels. The existing hip roof was changed to a gable then covered with a metal roof.

Webster Residence by Stephen Varady Architecture

Project : Webster Residence (alterations + additions to existing house)
site area : 242sq.m.
floor area : 261sq.m. (ground 92sq.m. / first 78sq.m. / lower ground 91sq.m.)
architect : Stephen Varady Architecture
interior architect : stephen varady architecture
project designer : stephen varady
project team : stephen varady, peter farman, annalisse morrow, stephen harris, scott lu, michael allimann, pascall mischler
engineer : andrew simpson, simpson design associates
builder : legendary constructions
photographer: stephen varady




















The webster residence is a substantial alteration to an existing two-storey terrace house in the sydney suburb of paddington. the existing internal walls were removed, making maximum use of the minimum space, allowing the spaces to open to the previously obscured garden and the highly desirable northern aspect.




















A clever manipulation of the side passage allowed the building to be widened on the ground floor level by 1m, without obstructing access to the rear garden. this extension to the side also allowed for the introduction of sunshine to the dining/kitchen/living areas of the house over the entire length of their sculptural storage units.





















The lower ground floor had previously been a leftover storage space under the house. with minor excavation and the construction of a new concrete floor, the space was transformed into an entire new floor with guest bedroom, bathroom/laundry, a children’s rumpus room, and a new grand staircase beside a previously limewashed existing sandstone wall.




















The design explores the nature of contemporary living in sydney. where previously the house was disconnected from its site and closed off from its garden, the new living room, rumpus room and main bedroom now open directly to this northern aspect, and take full advantage of the relatively mild climate of this city.

Home Renovation by HHF Architects

A renovation project for a new living space by HHF Architects. This independent structure creates a new living space under the roof and changes the unwanted conventional look of the house built in 1957. The house is standing in between two icons of Modern Swiss Architecture, on one side a Villa by Artaria & Schmitt and on the other side a Villa by the architect Hermann Preiswerk.



















The roof is covered with wide metal sheets of a copper-titaneum-zinc-alloy. The surface treatment of the material looks more like a textile surface, than a common tin roof. The new form of the roof with the flattened ridge and the solid chimney alludes to the weekend house on the Tessenberg, designed by Paul Artaria.





















In order to keep the costs low by profiting of synergies, the project and the construction of the building were planned simultaneously. To save the costs of an expensive emergency roof the new roof was put up over the existing one. The old roof was torn down only after the new one was sealed.























The waisted floorplan strengthens the perspective and projects the surrounding nature of the garden through the fully glassed openings back into the two seperate rooms.

Benjamin Murua & Constanza Infante | Countryside House

Architects: Benjamín Murúa A. - Constanza Infante S.
Collaborator: Paula Phillips
Locaction: Lo Prado, Curacaví, Chile
Estructural Engineer: Luis Ignacio Correa P.
Construction company: Carlos Torres U.
Site Area: 3985 sqm
Constructed Area: 415 sqm
Project Year: 2006
Construction Year: 2007-2008
Photography: Cristóbal Palma

The expansion and renovation project of the countryside house is located on the road to Cuesta Lo Prado, on Curacavi city (Metropolitan Region). The building sits on a plain between the hills and the valley on a widely open space overlooking the hills on the east and the valley on the west.

Requirement was to expand the house adding 3 bedrooms and a sala but keeping the existing geometry intact. The objective of the project was to reuse and emphazise some elements of the Chilean houses of the early 20th century present in the pre-existing building like patios, galleries and open corridors.

The house had an “L” shape layout housing a sequence of bedrooms with a gallery on the east side and a open corridor on the west. This 2 circulations were use and extended to the north so as to integrate all with a second “L”where the new bedrooms and sala were included, connecting the old part with the new one with a threshold.

With this operation, the gallery took the place of the core circulation connecting all the areas but also as place to stay because of its width and orientation to the morning sun and the hills. On the other side, the corridor was extended to the garden overlooking the valley and protected from the heat during summer days. The bedrooms and the sala surround a patio that being enclosed becomes an inner court as an extension of the sala.

Once the gates that contain the space are opened, the garden blends with the geography of the hill, bringing it into the project. The configuration of the house allowed working with open corridors, galleries and patios and to give it a fresh look contemporary materials were use like glass, steel, wood and concrete.

The sofits disappeared and special constructive details use on the joints between the windows and the roof taking advantage of the lightness of the materials.