Approached from the quiet street — or from the rear boundary too — Tallowood by Davis Architects adopts a deceptively modest, low-slung posture. It is a textbook Tardis effect, where volumetric manipulation defies initial exterior impressions. It produces a refreshing reminder that a house doesn’t need to shout its size in order to establish its presence. Instead, a restrained dark façade cleverly conceals a rich three-level residence within.
Inside, the primary view draws the eye directly through the home toward the surrounding canopy, establishing a brilliant ‘green-to-green’ link. Here, Davis Architects champions the ‘garden room’ approach, dissolving traditional boundaries so the landscape becomes an active participant with the home. The architecture deliberately frames the coastal flora, using full-height glass to transition internal rooms to external decks and fostering a continuous dialogue between the built form and beautiful native Melaleuca paperbark.
The kitchen is anchored by an outstanding stone bench crafted from Patagonia quartzite. Principal architect, Ed Davis, notes that Jason Grant collaborated brilliantly on interior materials, interior paint colours and soft furnishings. Against an interior defined by understated richness and softer blue-grey tones, the Patagonia slab is a dramatic punctuation mark. Sourced locally through Franca Design, the stone provides geological drama — an explosive, natural mosaic of translucent quartz pockets, creamy feldspar, dark biotite shards and a unique turquoise ‘diamond’.
This highly graphic, tectonic element — set against precise, minimalist joinery — tilts the kitchen counter from utilitarian into the territory of art. The piece catches the changing coastal light, providing a raw counterweight to Tallowood’s otherwise serene language.
Ascending to the third level reveals a private retreat, far from the communal spaces below. Again, full-height glass doors and a sprawling deck invite the subtropical environment inside, transitioning the bedroom into a diurnal sanctuary.
“We wanted it to be space that could be occupied during the day as well as for sleeping,” Ed notes. “Whether its a morning coffee on the deck or the sea breeze on summer night, it’s one of the best spaces in the home.”
In conversation, Ed’s use of “secret grotto” when describing the atmospheric lower floor leapt out. ‘Grotto’ isn’t a word we hear much in contemporary residential design, yet it fittingly captures Tallowood’s bottom storey. Nestled beneath the main living tiers to negotiate the sloping site, this sanctuary houses a sauna and storage, and direct access to the pool and outdoor entertaining area. It also offers a sensory shift: a cool, sheltered refuge from the summer sun.
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Davis Architects’ most adept solution, however, may be in negotiating the actually existing site conditions. Bordering a dense coastal reserve, the battle-axe lot carries a BAL-40 bushfire rating, the second highest in Australia. Standard code-compliant responses often yield bunker-like structures, but Ed and team have applied material ingenuity without aesthetic compromise.
“We had to be careful about external materials to ensure bushfire resistance,” Ed explains. “We couldn’t use timber on the bush‑facing side. The clients wanted charred timber cladding; the alternative product had a similar appearance, but was made of cement.” The result is an impenetrable, non-combustible shell that honours the clients’ design sensibilities.
The clients, a design‑industry couple from Melbourne, sought a permanent “sea change.” Swapping a grey southern metropolis for the Northern Rivers, they needed a durable beachside sanctuary that could evolve into a vibrant intergenerational home when needed. As early design stages were handled remotely, the owners leaned on Ed’s local knowledge to navigate council mandates, the local climate and site‑specific constraints.
“Much of the early design happened remotely and they placed a lot of trust in us, which is always appreciated,” Ed reflects.
By project’s end the couple had relocated north for good. In handing over the keys, Davis Architects delivered more than an adaptable, fire‑prepared structure; they created a wonderful home for the clients’ new coastal future.
