Charming waterside cottage design in Sydney’s Birchgrove

A house of contrast and continuity, thoughtfully braiding the old and new is the guiding concept behind this home in the charming waterside suburb of Sydney’s Birchgrove.

The exposed, textural sandstone wall spears through the levels, contrasting with the home’s silky stone, smooth concrete flooring and glossy finger tiles.

Wrapped in a glass box, the wine cellar glows at the base of the open-riser staircase.

The elegant, laced features of the original house unfurls into the sun drenched contemporary rear with its soaring cathedral ceiling.

Carved from milky white Bianco Alpi marble, the sculptural kitchen island anchors the relaxed family living and dining zone.

Waterside Cottage Home Design

The historic front of the house is respectfully honoured through colour and detail, expressed in a handsome, classic palette and the sympathetic reinstatement of ornate ceiling roses, fretwork, wainscoting and leadlight windows. One of the home’s hero spaces, the Martini Room, is appointed with generously scaled upholstered furniture and deep, chocolate-toned cabinetry.

In a tactile prelude to the rear extension, a network of interlocking tumbled Botticino, Nero, Grigio Carnico, and Rosso Verona stones are assembled at the threshold between the heritage structure and new addition. Beyond, the architecture soars to a cathedral volume, bathing the contemporised interiors in natural daylight and unveiling a majestic harbourside vista wrapped in a veil of emerald trees.

The insertion of slick, steel-framed glazing and an open staircase acts as a unifying gesture, stitching the house together through framed views and shafts of light. Floating treads trace the sandstone wall as it pierces through each of the five levels, anchoring the home in texture and materiality. 

The client’s love of vivid colour is given confident expression through decorative accents and soft, layered furnishings. This is most evident in the master bedroom, where graphic lines frame a striking tangerine bedhead set against an inky navy joinery wall that cleverly performs in reverse as both a headboard and wardrobe. 

In the ensuite and throughout the house, the renovated wet areas play to a more modern and moodier palette, with rich timber vanities, brass fixtures and deep, expressive stone. 

Transformed and transposed, this family home is a future-proofed design where the past and present strike a masterful balance.