In a quiet suburban Sydney cul-de-sac, a timeworn Californian bungalow has been carefully reworked to preserve its original form and introduce a simple, light-filled rear extension. Years of collaged modifications were peeled away to uncover the home’s honest masonry structure, allowing a new chapter to emerge with clarity and ease.

Delivered under the Complying Development, the internal reconfiguration opens into a lean, gable - roofed rear addition that embraces warmth, simplicity and spatial calm. Soaring internal ceiling heights paired with limewashed exposed beams create a tactile framework for daily life, while east-west glazing and skylights gently animate the interiors with shifting light throughout the day. To counter the site’s predominantly southern orientation, eastern windows were repositioned and approved through a performance solution—bringing in both morning sunlight and natural cross ventilation.

Materially, the project is underpinned by a subtle, layered palette. Marmorino plaster walls in the kitchen, living and dining areas introduce a nuanced, luminous surface quality—scattering light softly and creating a sense of movement within stillness. These quiet surfaces are paired with silver travertine, custom oak joinery and warm tonal accents to evoke a grounded, tactile atmosphere.

At the street front, a modest new portico gestures toward the gabled rear extension beyond, drawing a quiet thread of continuity between the original structure and the new addition.