The Design Files: Inside the renovation of a 1980s brown brick house

Who: Alex Bennett, and her two children Parker and Scout

What: Renovated beachside brick home

Where: Suffolk Park, New South Wales

A 1980s brown brick home doesn’t necessarily jump out as an interior designer’s dream home, but Alex Bennett could see the potential in this Suffolk Park property.

The designer and stylist undertook serious renovations to make her dream location work, saying, “The entire original home was gutted, and three metres was chopped off the rear of the house.”

This full rebuild was coupled with her own interior design and styling input to create a warm, contemporary and refined home.

The brief to Simon Addinall from Those Architects was for something solid, practical, and well laid out. The family wanted a big main living area and kitchen, and lots of natural light.

The architects retained the original external walls and tiled roof, but that was all that remained. The internal layout was completely reconsidered, and the doors and window positions were relocated to enhance the aspect and natural light. Once this initial work was complete, a second-storey extension was introduced.

Bennett has brought her own touch to the interior styling, creating a “soft but solid” feel, with a variety of textures and warm neutral tones.

The home balances lots of open space with comfy nooks, and reflects the relaxed lifestyle of the family who live here. “We have filled the space with the works of local talented creatives, which really enhances the warmth of the house,” Bennett says.

While the outcome is exactly what Bennett dreamed of, it wasn’t without its bumps along the way.

Adaptive reuse (rather than totally re-building from scratch) is an excellent environmental strategy, but can involve hidden costs and unexpected hurdles.

“Renovating rather than rebuilding was more costly and stressful than planned, as there were a lot of unknowns in the quality of the existing structure,” Bennett says. But she emphasises that the outcome was worth it.

The calm and light-filled home is a street away from the beach, making it a favourite location for friends to drop in for an evening barbecue.

The home’s new functionality and layout means it is the perfect spot for casual entertaining. Bennett enthuses: “It’s so nice having friends over, the adults can sit around and have a chat while the kids run and play on the grass.”

How to reimagine brown

You heard it here first, brown isn’t going anywhere. We’ve spent years leaning heavily on cool grey and white interiors but, as we head into 2020, things are looking decidedly warmer.

• Greys are slowly but surely being replaced by warmer neutral tones, including “greiges” (grey crossed with beige), right through to terracottas, nutmeg and deep ochres.
• There’s no need to fear brown – we’re not talking the “mission brown” of the 1970s. Start by introducing warm browns via natural materials – think buttery tan leather accessories, and warm timber furniture.
• As we start to replace grey our base whites need to warm up too. Choose a white with a subtle warm or neutral undertone.
• Consider a tonal palette – that means incorporating various shades of one key hue, rather than painting all internal walls the exact same colour.