About
About Lunchbox Architect
Lunchbox Architect is designed to highlight the outstanding residential work of architects. Architects often get overlooked for smaller scale and tight budget projects because they're perceived as expensive, exclusive or only interested in big budget projects.
This is not true!
In fact, an architect is the best qualified person to design smaller spaces. It's their job to design a home that fits your brief within your budget. Plus they manage the builder and other consultants to make sure there are no cost blowouts while building.
So if you're planning a new home or renovation soon (or if you just like to daydream), Lunchbox Architect is the perfect place to get some inspiration.
What you'll find on Lunchbox Architect
- Residential: We feature single family homes, holiday homes, individual apartments, new homes and renovations. Unfortunately that means no apartment complexes or multi-residential developments.
- Architecturally-Designed: We love architects and our mission is to promote their best work. All our homes are architecturally designed.
- Affordable: Obviously this is subjective, but you won't see any million dollar mansions here. We don't feature projects with a $1 million + budget and we prefer smaller, low budget projects.
- Small Scale: The average house size in Australia is a whopping 214 m² (2303 ft²). We only feature houses that are smaller than average (who needs that formal dining area, anyway) unless it's housing an extra large family. Sometimes smaller is better.
- Innovative: There's nothing we love more than a bit of innovation. The projects we feature usually solve a common problem in an interesting way.
About Brodie Norris
37 years. That's how long I've been designing houses. I'm nearly 40 now. What can I say… late bloomer?
Naturally my first few houses were rather derivative; they lacked imagination…
At least that's what my pre-school teacher told me.
"Brodie, you've already painted lots of houses. Why don't you paint something else?" She pleaded one day, "How about you paint your family?"
I buckled under pressure and painted my family…
In front of a house - asymmetrical, with a raked roofline and non-standard windows.
It's safe to say I love houses. (Clearly) I always have.
That's one of the reasons I started Lunchbox Architect - an excuse for me to look at (and write about) houses every day of the week! And that's why I started my architecture practice, Sunlight & Shelter, so I can help people create their ideal home.
I hope you enjoy these clever homes as much as I enjoy finding them and sharing them with you.
About the name Lunchbox Architect
The name Lunchbox Architect comes from the idea of sharing architect-designed homes in an accessible, everyday way - think an architect in your lunchbox. It reflects the focus of the site: featuring thoughtfully designed homes and the architects behind them.
Architecture is a registered profession. Like doctors or lawyers, the title architect is legally protected and reserved for those who have met a rigorous set of professional requirements. This typically includes many years of formal education (often including a postgraduate degree), a minimum period of practical experience, successful completion of a demanding competency exam and interview process, professional indemnity insurance, and an ongoing commitment to continuing professional development. It’s a serious qualification, and rightly so.
At Lunchbox Architect, that distinction matters. The platform exists to showcase the work and thinking of registered architects, and to help homeowners better understand the value that qualified architects bring to their projects. The name refers to the architects whose work is featured, not a casual use of the title.
Respect for the profession, and for the people who have earned the right to use the title architect, is fundamental to what Lunchbox Architect stands for.