ALIVE WITH LUSH FOLIAGE AND DEEP FOREST-HUED WALLS, the Perth eco-home of sustainability
consultant Tanya McKenna and trades manager Peter Chadwick wears its green credentials as proudly as its
paintwork. “Our vision was to have a beautiful, green-themed urban home,” Tanya says. “Because we used so
much concrete, timber and brick, we wanted a bold colour that pops, but this dark green is also calming and
moody.” With four renovations behind them, the couple wanted to build a sustainable house from scratch. The
result is a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home with a mezzanine-style study and large ground-floor living area
which opens onto a courtyard. Teaming up with Tanya’s architect sister Carla Karsakis, who runs Etica Studio,
the couple played to their strengths, Tanya using her understanding of sustainable design and Peter crafting
custom furniture, while Carla drove the vision for an open-plan, low-impact house across two levels.
OLD IS NEW AGAIN Nowhere was off limits when it came to sourcing. From Copenhagen markets to
demolition sites, Subiaco vintage stores to the local tip, the trio stayed true to their belief in upcycling. “There’s
a raw feeling from the crushed-rubble concrete walls, which use demolition concrete,” Tanya explains. “And
there’s warmth in the recycled furniture. Even some window frames and doors were salvaged.” Gumtree led
them to timber floorboards from a Melbourne town hall, while eBay unearthed a green bathtub and basin.
PASSIVE PROGRESSIVE The house stays at a comfortable temperature year round and is cost-efficient to
heat and cool. “Carla designed this home to be solar passive, so you avoid hot morning and afternoon sun, but
you have lots of northern light,” Tanya explains. “A green roof [see p52] provides a thick insulating layer, plus we
have lots of shading in summer from a tree we planted in the courtyard.” With the builder, paint suppliers and
joiners equally eco-aware, this home was a true green team effort. “They all got it,” Tanya says. RTake your leaf
High ceilings enhance the
spacious feel of the living
room, with its distinctive
foliage-green wall painted
in Taubmans Forest Green, in
a low VOC (volatile organic
compound) formula. “Without
the green wall, it would have
been too boring,” Tanya says.
The chairs are from Intoo
Collectables and the vintage
sideboard was from a house
sale. A nest of tables made
by Tanya’s grandfather sits
on a rug from Ikea. A
real living49
HOMES