This Surry Hills terrace had been stripped of its Victorian attraction after years of ad-hoc renovations.
Amongst its flaws, the residence hid a dangerously rickety staircase, a entrance balcony that threatened at any second to break down, and a group of cobwebs and dirt had gathered on nearly each exterior floor.
Tasked with bringing a way of id again to the run-down residence, design studio Akin Atelier discovered an unlikely supply of inspiration in the home’s mismatched interiors.
‘Slightly than pursue a literal restoration, we used its fragmented state to as the premise for a brand new narrative,’ Akin Atelier director Kelvin Ho says.
‘We imagined the home as if it had as soon as belonged to a sequence of inventive occupants — artists, ceramicists, musicians — every leaving traces if their craft behind. That speculative historical past turned our reference level, shaping interiors that really feel crafted, layered, and imbued with reminiscence.’
Whereas hypothetical, it was an particularly applicable backstory given Surry Hills’ status as a inventive and industrial hub, situated on the perimeter of the suburb’s outdated garment manufacturing district.
This set the tone for the strong but refined supplies that now characteristic throughout the renovation.
On the entrance of the home, stable timbers flooring line the cosy street-facing lounge, beside a brand new sculptural staircase, with detailed joinery by Cranbrook Workshop turning what was as soon as a structural catastrophe into a press release characteristic.
The remainder of the bottom flooring can be reserved for the reconfigured communal dwelling areas. Designed round a sunken leather-based lounge, the kitchen and eating reveal ceramic flooring tiles, forged concrete varieties, and uncovered ceiling joists — including persona by way of these wealthy textures.
‘One other problem was resisting the usual terrace mannequin of maximising gentle. As an alternative, we sought a moody and atmospheric high quality, layering window therapies and thoroughly calibrating gentle to create nuance and depth,’ Kelvin says.
The higher flooring maximise each inch of area throughout the bedrooms and loos, embracing the sloping rooflines as a part of the interiors with colored microcement finishes.
‘Each change was made to revive liveability whereas reintroducing a way of tactility and character,’ Kelvin says.
The ensuing iteration is now a soulful homage to the terrace’s roots and the suburb’s previous. With ample handmade qualities and lived-in particulars, there’s no scarcity of character anymore.
