A young entrepreneurial couple were drawn to the lifestyle offered by their Wonga Park property: acreage, a pool, tennis court and a bush reserve beyond the backyard. The house itself had plenty of space, but that space was not working particularly hard.

With young children and a busy family life, they wanted the existing home to feel warmer, more organised and more connected to its landscape. The brief was not to make the house bigger. It was to understand what they already had and use it better.

Design began in 2021 with a long-term masterplan so the transformation could occur in stages as priorities, budget and family life evolved.

Banksia Reborn began with a simple idea: regeneration rather than replacement.

The project takes its name from the Banksia, a plant adapted to Australia’s fire-prone landscapes and capable of regenerating after disturbance. That idea informed the long-term masterplan developed for the house: retain what was useful, intervene carefully, and allow the home to begin a new life rather than replacing it.

The central architectural challenge was the depth of the existing plan. An earlier extension had created a broad footprint with 2.4-metre ceilings, leaving parts of the house feeling dark and disconnected despite its generous size. The clients did not need more area. They needed the space they already had to work harder.

Our strategy focused on bringing light deeper into the interior, improving circulation and redistributing function across the plan. Walls were selectively removed around the kitchen, dining and living areas, while a large island now allows movement between the kitchen, hallway, children’s retreat, dining room and deck without creating another obstacle in the centre of the house.

Storage is distributed throughout the home where it is actually needed, helping everyday family life remain organised without allowing clutter to dominate the rooms. The same principle extends to smaller interventions, including discreetly integrated cat-litter storage near the laundry: understand the routine first, then design an architectural response that quietly supports it.

New openings were introduced selectively rather than wholesale. Upstairs, the reworked parents’ retreat and bedroom now capture the morning sunrise through the surrounding gum trees, while a new kitchen servery strengthens the relationship between the interior and deck.

Timber, natural stone and warm neutral finishes introduce tactility without competing with the landscape. The interiors are deliberately calm, allowing views, texture and family life to provide the character.

Thermal performance was improved through targeted underfloor and wall insulation, draught reduction and new low-E double glazing, while the existing footprint, roof forms and much of the external fabric were retained.

The project was conceived as a whole-house masterplan and delivered in stages as the family’s circumstances evolved. The result demonstrates that substantial change does not always require more building. As the clients put it, the living spaces now feel bigger “despite the shell of the home being unchanged”.

4 Bedrooms
Acreage / Lifestyle
Designed 2021
Staged Construction

Main Builder: Block Constructions
Joinery: Kurv Living
Styling: Handpicked Studio
Photographer: Romina Sgro

Wonga Park, Melbourne
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Land
Manningham City Council