Tucked in the rural inland of the Flinders coast, Victoria, Sally Draper Architects have designed an L-shaped holiday home for two that expands to cater for friends and family.
Down a long winding road among native Australian Melaleucas, you’ll find the recently completed Flinders House. Sally Draper Architects were entrusted with the new build to replace a 1970s farmhouse that had been in the family for generations, composed of two gable forms with a focus on shared and private spaces. Designed for a couple, their adult children and large extended family, Sally Draper Architects have allowed the family to comfortably holiday together without compromising each other’s individual place of retreat.
Sally Draper Architects founder and director Sally Draper says that because the property had been in the family for so long, the client had very specific views and orientations that were important to them. “Our aim was to provide a house that not only allowed the family to fully experience their existing cherished relationship to the site but also to expose them to other opportunities that might not have previously been possible,” Sally says. Both wings of the home extend around a courtyard towards a specified favoured view of the rolling green hills, contrasting the charcoal timber-clad exterior.
Sally Draper says the house was designed for family and friends to coexist, comprised of two adjoining orthogonal wings. “The two wings of the house can open or close to become an intimate retreat for just one or two people within the main wing, or a much more expansive family compound at other times where both wings are fully occupied,” Sally says. When the house is full, Sally has created areas for quiet retreat in the form of small window nooks or external decking, “to allow people to be as involved or reclusive as they wish.”
Nooks, window seats and private retreats were designed for multi-generational living.
The fireplace is embedded within a full-height sandstone wall atop a concrete hearth in the living room, featuring the Mantis Floor Lamp by Schottlander for DCW Editions.
Interior designers and stylists Pipkorn & Kilpatrick have focused on a calming palette of muted blues in the communal left wing.
Stool designed by Melbourne furniture maker Mark Tuckey
Both wings follow a similar floorplan and a clear hierarchy of spaces; communal areas towards the front and bedrooms and bathrooms at the back with adjoining outdoor spaces. The right wing of the house contains the main living area, dining room, kitchen and bar area with the master bedroom and ensuite concealed behind the cabinetry, while the left wing accommodates guests with two additional bedrooms, bathrooms and their own private living room.
Externally, the house pays homage to the site’s history and existing old dark-stained dairy farm while internally, a tactile material palette of white bagged brick, wood-washed timber, brushed concrete and stone evoke a sense of warmth and comfort. In the courtyard, recycled bricks from the previous building are now used as pavers underneath the timber and steel pergola.
Anchored by the family’s relationship to the surroundings, Flinders House celebrates co-living and integrated indoor-outdoor spaces through Sally Draper’s refined approach to a country home.
The charcoal timber-clad exterior contrasts the rolling green hills.
As stunning as this location is I personally would want to have more art in this home. Not to take away from the views but as something to layer onto those finishes. The interior has a certain coldness otherwise. Personal preference. Nothing more.