Gable House

This inner-urban Melbourne build, designed by Nine Muses Design, boasts cathedral ceilings worthy of choir song.

Home to a busy family and their much-loved fur child, Gable House is a modern sanctuary and altar to serenity.

The initial brief to architect Jane Macrae of Nine Muses Design was for large family home that didn’t look ‘big’, and was respectful to the scale and style of the streetscape.

The clients came to the table with clear ideas, but were keen to be challenged too.

So, while the design has stylised some fairly conventional forms, the house is full of modern features.

The result was a home in harmony, with its own distinct character.

The owners wanted to strike a balance between “respect to location and history” and “being of its own time” and favoured a mix of white, crisp and modern on one hand, and traditional weatherboard/ gable forms on the other.

With a pilot, teacher, and teenager in the mix, the design had to cater to a few different circadian rhythms.

To achieve this, Nine Muses Design crafted zones within the house to provide separate living areas.

And a second bathroom adjoining the guest room accommodates the pilot client’s unusual shift-work hours.

The family wanted:

Something modern and minimalist, which could nestle convincingly among single-fronted Victorian cottages.
Individual spaces to retreat, study, and sleep.
A light-filled hearth to the home, with kitchen and dining offering a place to congregate and connect.
4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 living zones, a double garage, a second bathroom adjoining guest bed to cater for Mark’s shift work, an open plan kitchen / dining/ living area flowing into a peaceful north-facing courtyard.

The kitchen-outdoor connection was significant for client Chrissie, who loves to entertain, and a street-side people-watching porch perch was another key agenda item.

Seemingly contrasting priorities of separateness and togetherness were at play for the modest-sized site. And creating a spacious family home with a double garage on such a compact inner-urban site appeared at first to be too big an ask.

The solution was to capitalise on the precedent of the adjoining cafe with no front setback. This allowed the build to come forward on the block. In the process, the client gained distance and privacy from the two-storey rear neighbour, and allowed light into living zones.

The budget and design concentrated on what mattered most to the owners – kerbside appeal and a communal indoor-outdoor living area with northern aspect. There was a focus on luxury and quality space.

Building beside a neighbourhood café with no front setback offered dual gifts.

Not only could the home come forward on the site, but the perfect Melbourne flat-white was also easily accessible.

Architect Jane Macrae from Nine Muses Design derives much joy from collaborating with her clients to problem-solve.

She designs every project WITH her clients.

“I try to keep it real with my design approach,” says Macrae. “I figure, if the client loves it, it’s a success.

I make it my business to understand how my clients live and want to live. The fact that I now count many as friends is testament to great collaborations.

In this case, the owner Mark and I clicked right away and a great working relationship evolved. Mark is a very detail-driven pilot with a brain that is excited more by engineering than aesthetics – always thinking 10 steps ahead.

He is one of those incredibly special clients – wonderfully trusting with the design, while making it his mission to ensure it was executed to perfection.

Chrissie was more involved in the interiors and interested in the ‘feel’ of the space. They were a perfectly balanced team, each playing to their strengths.”

For Mark and Chrissie, the feeling is mutual.

“Jane was completely unfazed by the challenges presented to her,” said Chrissie. “She took our ambitious brief and maximised every element of the space. She made it easy.

We don’t regret a single decision we made. It exceeds every expectation we had of what a beautiful and functional home could be.”

Client Chrissie shares the favourite feature of her new home, saying;

“We love the façade, with its timber wraparound, bold staircase and imposing front door,” says Chrissie. “It has a ‘punch in the face’ impact that attracts the attention of every passer-by. Inside, the house is a soothing haven. Every day we appreciate Jane’s consideration of window placement, lighting, and the soft finish of the spotted gum flooring.”

Project Details

Project size – 250 m2
Site area – 375 m2
Completion date – 2019
Building levels – 2

Project Team

Architecture

Nine Muses Design

Nine Muses was established by Jane Macrae in 2017. Jane formally trained as an Architect in her home town at The University Of Melbourne.

She has 18+ years of architectural experience working locally and abroad on a range of projects and has worked on renovations, custom homes, retail, muti-residential developments, commercial fit-outs, master-planning and design of large scale resorts.

She designs beach houses and residential developments along the Victorian coastline and finds all projects rewarding – from the small renovation of a family home to concepts for six-star resort development.

Photography

Mike Saunders