Renovations

When you've got active young kids, your home must be robust enough to withstand a lot of punishment. This kitchen is built to last.

The new living area of this heritage home captures glimpses of the sky and opens seamlessly to the outdoors.

Sometimes, reevaluating and reconfiguring what you have proves that you already have enough. It did for this family of five...

Living at home while your extension is built sounds like a nightmare, but this clever idea allowed the owners to live disruption-free.

Many old terraces are dark and pokey, but thanks to a tricky secret behind those doors, this terrace is now light, bright and spacious.

Life can change a lot in 10 years, so what do you do if your home no longer fits in with your life? Move or renovate?

If you're noticing a bit of an underwater theme in this home, it's no accident. This is a home for a keen scuba diver!

Inspired by shearing sheds in the area and rhyming with the original home, a clever addition transforms this weekender.

A simple, yet considered pavilion connects the home to the garden and brings greenery and light into the living area.

'Does my lounge look big in this [double-height space]' you ask your partner, but for once you hope they reply, 'kinda, yeah'...

The history and beauty of this old home are respected and celebrated by a bustle dress-inspired addition.

Inspired by the spaces and ornamentation of the original home, this home plays with light and space to create a dramatic addition.

This adventurous renovation transforms an ugly duckling into a fun and functional family home, celebrating the owners' hobbies.

Three sculptural walls create nooks and niches within a larger open-plan space, creating the opportunity to mingle or seek solitude.

In a street of Californian Bungalows, it was important to maintain the status quo. It's a whole other story at the rear of this home...

And he said, 'Let there be light', and there was light. Thanks to a new double height space, this cottage is transformed.

The '80s was responsible for numerous crimes against taste (but some pretty fabs music). What can you do to right some of those wrongs?

With a passion for sustainability, these owners salvaged whatever they could to reduce the carbon footprint of their renovation.

This home's meticulous maintenance record details upkeep such as 'biannual repainting'. It was in A1 condition, but still needed modernising.

These owners decided to work with what they had rather than start afresh. The result is a functional and character-filled home.

A home on a corner block maximises light without sacrificing privacy by reorienting to the north and some strategic clerestory windows.

We love simple projects that make a big difference. And it doesn't get much simpler than a sunroom and a fence.

Light and dark, east and west, new and old, Dark Light House's new living pavilion contrasts without simply doing the opposite.

We love to get out and enjoy the backyard, but too often our homes are disconnected from our outdoor spaces. Here's what you can do...

Floating above the original milkbar is a recently renovated pavilion which makes this unique family home feel like it's a treehouse.

With a slim budget, demolition of the rear of this home was not an option. But an even slimmer bathroom was part of the solution...

Typically, a lean-to with a laundry and kitchen tacked on to the rear of an older home is the first thing to go in a reno. Not here...

It's a tale as old as time: dark, dank terrace seeks space and light. And yet architects are still finding new ways to tell the story.

If there's an old tree in your backyard, don't cut it down to make way for your new reno. Instead, make it the centrepiece.

Considering an eco-friendly upgrade to your home? Look no further for inspiration than Collingwood Compact.

'This house was purchased by Kasimiersz and Lucia in 1955', reads a plaque on the wall. One of the ways this home remembers its past...

Sometimes the constraints that can make a project more difficult end up creating something unique and wonderful.

Transforming a dark Californian Bungalow into a sun and fun-loving family home with some clever renovation ideas.

Breaking out of the old, brown-brick home, this new glass box for living is surrounded by birdlife and the sounds of insects at dusk.

Even if you're stuck with a south-facing backyard overshadowed by your own house, there's no need to dwell in darkness.

Renovating an older, inner-city home comes with a peculiar set of challenges - how to make it seem bright and spacious when it's not.

An architect wrestles with the romance of renovating a historic home and the challenge of meeting planning and regulatory requirements.

A double-height space. An internal courtyard. A huge skylight. All tricks to create a sense of space hidden behind a narrow terrace.

The rear of this home is redesigned to give an air of spaciousness, with an internal reconfiguration and the addition of two gables.

Craving more space (and sun) and considering a move? Are you really better off uprooting your family and moving somewhere new?

A family of five create a joyful home with a series of open, colourful and light-filled spaces for their energetic young family.

A dark tunnel transforms into a bright, open space at this Cremorne terrace which celebrates the transition from old to new.

Simple, yet intelligent changes, which reference to the home's post-war cream brick heritage create a period drama of a difference.

Owned by a landscape gardener, this 1880s bluestone cottage is now connected to the garden and full of natural light and sea breezes.

It's Playtime in this fun-filled extension with secret hatches, a bridge, sloped walls and an aquarium of curious creatures.

An architect, a builder, and a joiner walk into a dark and dingy terrace...

The architectural equivalent of a lamington made with Swiss cheese and dusted with paprika sounds like a recipe for disaster, but is it?

To unite all living spaces without creating one large space, a unique nest-like studio sits above the living area in this reno.

This heritage home has been renovated with new living spaces. A covered outdoor space ties all these new spaces together.

This extension provides new living areas, a specialised sound recording space and performance area for a family of musicians.

The kitchen is the heart of Chef and Restaurateur, Scott Pickett's home, making it the perfect place to entertain friends and family.

Creating a family home requires more than a coat of paint and some pretty cushions. It requires good design and long-term thinking.

By working with the original roofline of this Federation home, the designer created a light-filled and spacious addition.

This compact family home uses the power of the sun for heating and cooling, keeping a family of six happy and comfortable.

A new addition slides under the eaves of this home, complementing the 1950s original, but reflecting the changing needs of Australians.

Inspired by the whimsical flourishes of the original 1930s home this renovation reinterprets brick sunbursts and Tudor detailing.

This home manages to be thoroughly modern while mimicking the classic gabled form of children's drawings and doll's houses.

With a grid system and the flexibility to adapt to various sites and needs, Allen Key House is the 'Billy' of the housing world.

Where a traditional terrace is dark and cellular this renovation finds light and open space, creating an addition of contrasts.

How does an architect update and extend a home that's been in the family for years? Without whitewashing the history and memories?

This compact home was made even smaller yet better, proving the amount of space you have is less important than how you use it...

By removing the internal walls of this unit and incorporating plenty of built-in joinery, it feels more spacious and modern.

Armed with a fun and adventurous brief, the architects of this apartment reno created a family home with surprises around every corner.

A beautiful attention to details and respect for the original home creates a modern space that effortlessly blends old and new.

An extension designed to appear more like a random collection sheds belies the clever, considered spaces within.

Application of passive design principles creates a living, breathing, sustainable space that is a pleasure to inhabit.

A new studio space and garage are positioned on this rural property to create a sheltered entry for the exisiting home.

This new living space is a sun-lover. Turning to face the sun, it is also a fun and happy space, not to mention a cost-saver.

Like many un-renovated inner-city homes, the bathroom of this Melbourne workers cottage had the best light and views in the house!

Perched House is a renovation that defies perceptions - feeling much larger than it actually is thanks to some clever tricks.

An elegant timber extension at the rear of this heritage home is bathed in natural light thanks to its northern orientation.

This compact addition proves small spaces can be highly liveable with plenty of storage, daylighting and a connection to the outdoors.

A deep soil green roof improves this home's environmental credentials, looks great and satisfies the owners' love of gardening.

A bold new living, dining and kitchen space grabs views of the trees and manages to fit a veggie garden in the most surprising place...

After buying a "rough" knocker-downer in the 'burbs, builder/designer/snow boarder, Robbie Walker decided to renovate instead.

A new living pavilion built from concrete blocks and with large windows facing the sun contrasts with the original weatherboard home.

This architect used the renovation of his home to improve his mental health and immunise himself and his family for the future.

If fur-babies, travel, colour and fun are ticking some mental boxes for you, you'll love Casa de Gatos (or 'House of Cats' in Spanish).

Careful to leave much of this heritage building intact, the architects have created new spaces above and behind the existing home.

If your neighbours are too close for comfort, focus on natural light. Your home will feel spacious and you'll forget they're there...

A breakout area and new master bedroom within a self-contained white box give this Fremantle home more flexibility and room to breathe.

Your home doesn't need to be physically big to feel spacious. There are a few tricks to make your home feel larger than life.

In a suburb of houses three times its size this home makes the most of its narrow block and compact size by capturing views of the sky.

A home rich with character is updated to improve comfort, privacy and connection to the landscape without losing its vintage feel.

This professional couple felt constrained by an outdated floor plan that sacrificed living areas for circulation and formal dining...

With low ceilings and only the rear of this living area above ground level, this terrace needed something big to feel like a home...

This 1920s home was transformed by an extension that refocusses living areas and a master retreat on a new north-facing courtyard.

By opening up to kitchen to the living area and creating a better connection to the deck, this apartment makes better use of its space.

With the option to demolish and start from scratch, MRTN Architects instead create a sensitive addition to this Victorian cottage.

'Ethel' has a number of delightful surprises up her sleeve, proving there's more to this humble Victorian home than she lets on...

A studio connected to the main house by a decked walkway creates maximum flexibility (and reduces renovation stress) for this family.

A series of small additions left this home's living areas dark and detached from the garden, but Trace Studio have changed all that.

A garage and studio with seperate access from the laneway is a flexible and sensitive space at the rear of this inner-city terrace.

With a good architect, much of the stress of building can be alleviated. This home was renovated while the owners were overseas!

Updates to this elegant, but out-of-touch 1940s home hark back to the era it was built - when houses were small but functional.

Small changes can make a huge difference to the comfort and practicality of a home. New windows and a pivot door transform this studio.

This renovated interwar house is now perfect home for a retired couple and adult family member plus a meeting place for nearby family.