2019-08-01_25_Beautiful_Homes

coastal | 25bh

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ftersellingtheirguesthouseinByronBay,
AlexBennettandherhusbandDavedecided
it wastimetofinda placetheycouldreallycall
home.‘Wefeltwewerereadyfora verydifferent
project,’explainsAlex,whoworksasaninteriorstylistand
creativeconsultant.‘Ourguesthousehada PalmSprings
aestheticandourpreviouspropertieshadbeenquintessential
beachhouses,butthistimewewanteda family home with a
cleanerandmoresimplifieddesign.’
ThepropertytheydecidedonwasanEightiesbungalowin
thesuburbsofByronBay.‘WhatI lovedaboutit is thatit didn’t
feeltiedtoanyparticulartimeorstyle– it meantwecould
putourownstamponit,’notesAlex,whoenlistedthehelp
ofaward-winningarchitecturalpracticeThoseArchitectsto
comeupwiththeplanstoremodeltheproperty.‘Ourbrief
wastocreatesomethingverysolid,durableandpracticalwith
lotsofnaturallightanda biglivingspaceincorporatinga
kitchen,’Alexremembers.‘Wegotallofthisplusmore!’
Therefurbishment,whichtookalmosta yeartocomplete,
entailedcompletelyguttingtheoriginalbuilding.Allofthe
externalwallswerekept,butmostofthedoorandwindow
positionswerechanged,aswastheentireinternallayout.
Threemetresoftherearofthehousewerechoppedoffin
ordertobuilda newtwo-storeyextensionwitha modernist
designtoconnectthehousewiththeoutdoorspaces.
Thecouple,whohavetwoyoungchildren– Parkeris five
and Scout is two – visited the site most days. ‘I am very