Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Dec 11, 2008 12:19 pm I always thought that a good renovation was one, whereby you didn't necessarily notice that the part you have renovated/extended wasn't part of the original house? Something that blends in nicely with houses around the area and of course your own house.
I must be so behind the times We are living in an expensive inner Brisbane suburb with lovely old houses, many Queenslanders and the occasional more contemporary home. Our neighbours have (should I say HAD) a lovely Queenslander with gorgeous verandahs and the house was sold for 1 million last year. It was smallish, just one level but apparently gorgeous inside and had been renovated inside and out. Fast forward to now....these neighbours have extended their house. They have a lovely old house at the front completely renovated with a huge big "growth on the back". The original house has a lovely pitched roof but the extension looks like a convention centre...flat roof and so, so high. It is ultra modern and no way in keeping with the original house. I am so amazed they were able to build something so high It is a contemporary building and doesn't even look like it is attached to the front of the house... it is positively the most hideous reno/extension I have EVER seen. A huge big hulk of a thing that you can see coming down the street (it is a steep street). No doubt it will be lovely inside and it is huge, the whole house will be worth a fortune b/c it wqas a million dollar house to begin with and is in a wonderful area, but it certainly wouldn't be everyone's taste! From a resale point of view, I guess I wouldn't have done it as there will be so many people who don't like it and it really would only appeal to such a small proportion. I personally like the reno/ext to be in keeping with the existing house or I think you should change the original facade of the house if you want to go ultra, ultra modern. This looks out of place...you almost want to laugh when you see it. It looks so ridiculous! I know these are only my view points but I wonder what do others think? I will post a photo once I have one ( I dont want to be seen taking a photo whilst the builders are there ) Also, i am not worried about our property as we are only renting next door, but If I was the owner of this house we are in I would be pretty peeved. From the pool, it looks like a monastry is above you! Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 2Dec 11, 2008 12:41 pm I agree, if your going to change the style of the house when extending then you need to change the pre-existing facade.
Can't wait to see a picture of this monstrosity. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no use being a damn fool about it. W.C. Fields Brought Established. Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 3Dec 11, 2008 12:54 pm Yes it is a shocker! I am waiting til the builders go for a pic (usually around 3 )
There is another similar house around the corner that has had a complete rehaul and it is so divine. An old house that has been redone and it all matches!!!! The verandahs go around the house, it is in the same roofline and so tasteful If I was buying a house (and these two house would be a similar price say 1.3 mill or more) I wouldnt even progress from the outside to the inside with the one next door. I would drive right by Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 4Dec 11, 2008 1:58 pm Similar place near me. It was a cathedral church type building and because it had heritage listing they couldn't knock it down. So they renovated it and built on this ultra modern extension on the back with swimming pool. The architecture of the new is excellent but the old church part and the new building look like seperate places. Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 5Dec 11, 2008 2:25 pm See, from a designers point of view, I actually love the juxtaposition of old and new. It is amazing to walk through the original part of the house, to have it then open up into this large, open, contemporary space True, it can be done very badly sometimes, but done correctly, it can look amazing.
I hate when people build or extend a home and try to pretend that its actually part of the original house. It is just so fake. Why disguise what it is, just because part of the house is a traditional style. Embrace the difference! One of my favourite architecture projects Ive seen recently was this house in Richmond. Very clever solution to a heritage overlay issue I think! http://www.worldarchitecturenews.com/in ... oad_id=713 Built with Bentley homes in Doreen All moved in Dec 2009 Now for the garden! Our stuff so far viewtopic.php?f=31&t=16532 Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 6Dec 11, 2008 2:38 pm Lostris, you and I are worlds apart... that Richmond house is certainly not my cup of tea!!
I don't understand why a person would buy in a heritage listed area and want to demolish it for ultra modern...yes they may want the land...but if they know before they buy, why buy? Heritage listing is for a reason? I don't think people want to "hide" the new addition with the old, rather blend the two and be sympathetic to the exsiting dwelling. The house I am talking about will win arcitectured awards, I bet but everyone I have spoken to hate it...you know... "wow that is amazing" but ask them if THEY would buy it or build it and I haven't heard anyone say yes. Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 7Dec 11, 2008 3:11 pm In our area, which is heritage listed, the council actually requires that any extension not look like i'ts part of the original building. We have some extension plans for our place - a Californian bungalow - and I spent quite a bit of time talking through their requirements. The theory is that if someone comes along in another 70 years and wants to renovate again, they can tell which is the original building and which is the extension. So, our council likes modern extensions on the back of heritage buildings.
As an example, our brick house has been painted . We wanted to render over it, and render our extension so that it matched. They said no. But we can render the new part and repaint the original house (we'd love to take the paint off and have the original brick but it's way, way too hard). We can even do them both in the same colour. Go figure. Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 8Dec 11, 2008 3:14 pm Its ok Leila, I know where you're coming from If I hadn't studied Architecture at Uni and had comtemporary design theory stuffed down my throat for 4 years I probably wouldn't have the appreciation for this sort of stuff that I do now
It is true though that many people move to a heritage area for the location, not thinking about the limitations, but this particular house was beyond salvaging in its existing condition, and needed to be completely rebuilt. I agree that new houses and renovations need to be sensitive to its surroundings, but it doesn't mean that it needs to replicate it. There are many ways to make the new building a tribute to its origins, rather than a literal remake of it. Built with Bentley homes in Doreen All moved in Dec 2009 Now for the garden! Our stuff so far viewtopic.php?f=31&t=16532 Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 9Dec 11, 2008 3:17 pm That sounds absolutely horrific!!! I so can't wait to see the photos!
The best extentions I have ever seen is one that I couldn't even see where it was extended. There's company that specialises in renovations/extentions in Perth (I can't remember the name) and they will do anything to get materials to match the old design, including custom made pieces. The work is devine! I was so impressed with it when I first saw it. I think it's very untrue that the extention will not match as I've seen it with my own eye! I think they are just so talented to be able to get it to look like it's always been like that-it must be so hard to do. Maybe it was cheaper to get them to design the montrosity than to get someone to think about how to get it to match hehehe Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 10Dec 12, 2008 11:40 am unfortumately, I have decided not to post a pic to protect our neighbours. I woud feel rotten about identifying them... I will out of respect for them keep this post anon.
The last think I would want is to offend them...I can imagine them being told about this thread! Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 11Dec 15, 2008 10:02 pm Good call
As for in synch or not - I feel that a glod reno done in new style can look good - a bad one look hoorrible and in same design sometime it can be not right. It's really dependant on the rest of the area, the outlook and the house itself. But there is an old saying - nothing like street appeal get the buyers looking. Re: What things do you believe constitute a good renovation? 12Dec 16, 2008 5:52 pm I spoke to an architect today re designing our extension and when he asked me where I lived, I told him.
He said "you don't live near that place being renovated do you?" and I said that I lived next door. I was very guarded... I didn't know what he thought about it or if he knew the owners etc, so I never gave an opinion on it but he said to me," I know the neighbours on the other side and they say it is hideous, I haven't seen it myself, but I have heard alot of talk about it...it has cost a lot of money and has ******** (suburb) all talking about it, and I am yet to hear anything positive. It will be hard to get any $$ back on it as it will only appeal to a such a small proportion of people. I hope the owners want to live there for a LONG time". Interesting....he said exactly what I thought/think....and I know zilch about architecture etc Depends what you're current inclusions are, but we're not including wardrobes and will just use second hand ones until we can save later on to get them built. Also have a… 3 11641 Hello Josh, This is Irving from PRIMA, we are a manufacturer of the staircase, railings, kitchen cabinets, windows, doors from China. If you have requirement to purchase… 0 5459 Coming back to your old stomping grounds, huh? Renovations on a budget can be quite the journey. It's like giving your house a new lease on life. The twist of not knowing… 1 3477 |