A derelict, ramshackle cottage in Sydney’s central west, “so derelict it was almost uninhabitable”, has been transformed into a coastal oasis.
Casey Scott, co-founder of Kinwolf Projects, and his team worked for six months to renovate the Balmain property, which was in dire need of a “complete renovation.”
“It was a dark, rotten wooden house with mould and damp everywhere. The layout was horrible and very peculiar as the house merged with the neighbour’s property. So it definitely needed repairs!” the 44-year-old told FEMAIL.
The original floor plan of the townhouse was odd, featuring a small dining room adjacent to the living room and kitchen, along with two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a small patio.
Now it is unrecognizable.
The two-story family home features a clean, white exterior, arched windows, a deluxe kitchen and an outdoor entertaining area, along with another bedroom and two bathrooms.
“I changed the entire layout of the house to make it more intuitive to live in and added an addition to maximize living space,” Scott said.
“People want what is trendy, but also something that is designed to look timeless – they want their home to still look beautiful in 10 years.”
The Balmain house originally looked ramshackle and had a strange layout (before, left). But now it looks unrecognizable (right). Casey Scott, co-founder of Kinwolf Projects, and his team worked tirelessly on the project for six months.
The house in its original state was worth $1.5 million. The renovated house sold at auction for $3.25 million, well above the reference price of $2.75 million.
Balmain’s rich history is reflected in its beautiful, classic homes with antique features, but Mr Scott said the new owners were young and wanted a “modern look”.
“I didn’t want to destroy the house, it’s about finding a middle ground. I try to make the house nicer than when I arrived, but still make it look like it’s been there for 100 years,” he said.
But the renovation brought with it its own set of challenges due to the suburb’s constraints, including access, on-site parking, heritage and “its quirkiness”.
“The house was intertwined with the neighbor’s house – it wasn’t a straight line down the middle,” Scott added.
“We were working with 1.2m bathrooms where the toilets barely fit in the space. So we needed to think a lot about lighting and tile choices to maximise the space and make them more liveable and enjoyable.”
The original townhouse originally featured a small dining room adjacent to the living room and kitchen, along with two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a small patio.
Just steps away from Mort Bay Park, the home is located in a sought-after suburb 5.5km from the bustling CBD.
Just steps from Mort Bay Park, the house is only 5.5km from the CBD.
As guests walk through the front door, they are greeted by an open-plan designer kitchen equipped with a dishwasher, concealed double-door refrigerator and multi-gas stove.
There is a ground floor bedroom that faces the street via a small balcony, which feels spacious due to the amount of natural light coming through the windows.
Beneath the stairs lies a combined powder room and laundry room, as well as an outdoor entertaining area.
Curves throughout the home, including the kitchen counter and base of the stairs, make the space appear larger than it is.
The house originally had wooden floors, low ceilings, and was dark inside.
It now feels like a coastal oasis. When guests walk through the door, they are greeted by this open space.
The kitchen is Mr. Scott’s favorite part of the house (pictured). Curves throughout the house, including in the kitchen counter and at the base of the stairs, make the space feel larger than it is.
“The arched doors leading out to the backyard are one of my favorite features of the house. I loved the rawness of the concrete seeping from the inside to the outside and the mondo grass weaving through the concrete,” Scott said.
‘If we had chosen plank flooring inside that faded to concrete outside, the backyard would have looked smaller, so we created the illusion of a larger backyard by continuing the concrete throughout and then placing lots of succulents around the walls.’
The kitchen is also Mr. Scott’s favorite part of the house.
“When you’re working in an inner-city suburb like Balmain, you need to be creative with design in small spaces; with integrated fridges and dishwashers you remove clutter and give a sense of space to an area where there was none,” he said.
“I loved the wood we used in the kitchen and how well it paired with the stone. The stone was polished to a matte finish and had beautiful brown flecks that worked perfectly. I love textures and don’t like anything too shiny, so the matte finish softened the space and gave it an earthy feel.”
“I changed the entire layout of the house to make it more intuitive to live in and also added an addition to maximize living space,” Scott said.
Mr Scott also said that the wrong colour can make a small space look even smaller.
“We always put skylights over bathrooms, again to increase the perception of size, because natural light is so important. I try to get natural light in from any area I can,” he added.
The renovation was completed within the $800,000 budget.
“In the current climate, costs continue to rise, but we always do our best to deliver our projects on time and on budget,” Scott said.
