Beachside Beauty
29 November 2007
| Location: | Inverloch, south of Phillip Island, Victoria |
| Country: | Australia |
| Architect: | Darren Evans, Solar Solutions Design |
The creative interplay of materials and the use of a prominent red 'fin' wall sets this house apart from its neighbours in the beachside suburb of Inverloch, south of Phillip Island, Victoria. Contrasting textures, such as the direction of the steel corrugations and the timber decking and wall panelling, come together under the one roof to create a harmonious design.
The Inverloch Beach House is a comfortable, energy efficient get away for a busy Melbourne based couple and their family. The project brief to building designers, Solar Solutions Design, was simple: create a stunning energy efficient house with lots of room, light and space to entertain.
Designer, Darren Evans said: "This project was exciting for our office because the client gave us freedom to be creative and explore the use of materials, texture and colour."
"Key to our design approach was to use different building materials and mix and match their texture directions to create interesting surface patterns." Darren said. "We used COLORBOND® steel to great effect in this regard. Its corrugated profile breaks up the monotony of large exterior walls and adds a sense of movement."
The Inverloch Beach House demonstrates how steel can be used across a number of applications, in this case, the roofing, walling, guttering, fascia and the garage door are all made from COLORBOND® steel.
"An important factor for us was colour matching the functional components of the house like the roofing, walling and the garage door," Darren said. "Because multiple products are available in COLORBOND® steel it makes it easy to bring colour continuity to the design."
"Equally important was the fact that steel is a durable product. Our clients wanted to minimise upkeep, so low maintenance materials were a must," Darren said.
The four bedroom house comprises a northern facing living area positioned toward the front of the site to capture natural light. Similarly, the master bedroom and balcony maximise northern exposure, which is regulated by a custom pergola system.
At the front of the site sits the living, dining and kitchen areas which open up to a spacious timber deck and stone paved entertaining area. To the back, split over two levels, sits the bedrooms and bathrooms and living quarters.
The colour of the exterior red feature wall was continued inside on the kitchen splash back and lounge room wall, marrying the external to the internal, while adding a dash of warmth to what is a predominantly crisp white contemporary interior.
Photography by Matthew Mallett
