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Issue 63 - Kitchen & Bathroom Issue

Issue 63

Kitchen & Bathroom Issue

Habitus 63 is arguably the most aspirational issue of the year with Kitchens & Bathrooms to dream about. Whether a family hub, an entertainer’s paradise or somewhere to grad a quick meal, how we live in and spend time in the kitchen is a very personal question that requires thought and an abundance of resources. Always the aspirational eye candy of design, we have some truly lovely kitchens from Greg Natale, YSG, Splinter Society, Sally Caroline and Studio Johnston. Bathrooms are just as important with Greg Natale, Studio Tate, YSG and Those Architects sharing some fabulous insights

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The jewels of the Madhouse
HomesCaelan Kaluder

The jewels of the Madhouse

Australia

Like an eclectic jewellery box, the GT Madhouse is full of delightful surprises and a design that is reminiscent of all that is precious to this creative family, inside and out.


Enlisted to capture the family’s bustling essence, Maytree Studios designed a home that is intertwined with the family’s interests for individual getaway and communal connectivity.

Set on sloping land within the suburb of Windsor in Brisbane, passers-by can see peeks of a hidden terrace, shrouded in greenery. Even from the outside, GT Madhouse wastes no space. Each corner is used with dynamic split levels reaching out from the original inner-city cottage.

Living Area viewed above

Inside is no different, every nook is fit for every family member. From the original concept to the final brick, the success of the home lies in Maytree Studios’ underlying principle of designing smaller and using smart planning to achieve higher quality outcomes.

Maytree Studio’s director Rebecca Caldwell says on the home’s achievement, “Through the clever use of acoustic design we were able to lessen the impact of noise on the owner’s hearing impairment,” she says. “The homeowners came to us with the specific requirement of dampening echo and reverberation within the home and this became a key focus of our design.”

Coming to the heart of the house and family, is the kitchen. Sunlight shines across all levels in the kitche, which is surrounded by smoothed varnished stairs, a double-height void and wide windows. Precast acoustic plasterboard shelters the kitchen with a softness that hums throughout the home.

GT Madhouse Kitchen

Despite the use of concrete and glass, the acoustic plasterboard – a material more often used in commercial and workplace environments – lays the groundwork for an atmosphere of peace. The design has created harmony for the homeowner, who says it makes the space feel soft and allows her to switch off and have quiet at a moment’s notice.

The materials coalesce into a visually inspiring moment when a visitor comes into the house, guiding them to see and wonder where the halls and corridors lead. Yet it is not only the materiality that sets GT Madhouse apart but the use of a naturalistic palette where the grey beams blend to the cream of the walls, trickling into the wooden finishes and gold accents.

GT Madhouse Lights Windows

The vision of an eclectic jewellery box shines here, the gold ceiling light and inbuilt bookcases create a semblance to the baubles and heirlooms that one would find inside their own jewellery box: heightened further by the inspiration of clever compartments and hidden snugs.

Adjacent to the kitchen is the centrepiece – a sunken living room, padded in a deep blue denim sofa and rich red rugs. Overlooking the open garden, the living space creates an atmosphere of connection to the outdoors. It also forms an abundance of natural light and airflow that brings harmony to the whole home.

Inset Living Area

Being on a sloping block, levels trail away from the kitchen. A half flight of stairs here leads to the original cottage, used primarily as the children’s space, while the second level wraps back around above the double-height void over the kitchen to the parent’s sound-isolated suite.

GT Madhouse hums with a soft melody, thriving of its occupants, where it gives the family a home of solace and comfort like the jewel it is.

Bookcase GT Madhouse
Entrance

Project details

Interiors – Maytree Studios
Photography – Toby Scott

We think you might like this another stepped home in Brisbane


About the Author

Caelan Kaluder

Tags

AustraliaBrisbanehabitusInterior DesignMaytree StudiosRebecca CaldwellrenovationResidential Architecture


Related Projects
Issue 63 - Kitchen & Bathroom Issue

Issue 63

Kitchen & Bathroom Issue

Habitus 63 is arguably the most aspirational issue of the year with Kitchens & Bathrooms to dream about. Whether a family hub, an entertainer’s paradise or somewhere to grad a quick meal, how we live in and spend time in the kitchen is a very personal question that requires thought and an abundance of resources. Always the aspirational eye candy of design, we have some truly lovely kitchens from Greg Natale, YSG, Splinter Society, Sally Caroline and Studio Johnston. Bathrooms are just as important with Greg Natale, Studio Tate, YSG and Those Architects sharing some fabulous insights

Order Issue