An award winning family home design

The changing Malcolm family structure dictated a lot of Richard's design ideas. When the couple moved into the township of Coffs Harbour, all but one of their children had moved out. Their 17-year-old daughter was about to go to university, but wanted an independent living space while still under the family roof. With plenty of grandchildren coming to visit, they wanted space to entertain up to 20 people at once.

The house comprises two interlocking wings that come together at the alfresco dining area. One side of the home has a bedroom and study, the other, two bedrooms. The house also has two separate living areas and one communal space, two bathrooms, a pantry and a large lap pool and workshop outside. 

Lyn loves colour and gets to indulge her passion as the interior designer for Design Studio 22. Frustrated with the conservative choices of some clients, she went hell for leather in her own home. 

"I hate it when I go into someone's house and they don't have any colour," says Lynn. "Some people just want to put in a feature wall and paint over it when they're sick of it, but we wanted to make the most of colour."

Lyn used warm colours like terracotta in the kitchen and living areas to offset 'cold' materials such as venetian blinds and concrete floors. Basing an earthy colour scheme around the Aboriginal artwork on the walls, Lyn used scorched orange in the marble benchtop and rug. 

The kitchen splashback uses a deep blue glass, corresponding with the swimming pool colour and outdoor feature wall to merge the inside and out.

The home is environmentally sound, maximising the elements with a clever layout Richard describes as "solar receptive". Living in a warm part of the country obviously helps, but the house maintains a consistent temperature throughout because of the way it's positioned, letting lots of fresh air and natural light flow through.

"We don't have an airconditioner, but the air flows through the house to cool it down," explains Richard. "Some people get a McMansion and just plonk it on a block, not realising that they can maximise the area."

Richard Malcolm

Design Studio 22

How did you develop the design?

We had an unusual family situation where we had a 17-year-old daughter living at home and she wanted her own space. So we gave her the back section and we have the front compartment, linked by the alfresco dining area. She's at university now, so it's a great room for guests to stay.

How does the house make the most of the climate?

It's a solar-receptive house; the way it's positioned makes the most of weather. We don't have an airconditioner but the air flows through the house to cool it down. The polished concrete floor catches the morning sun and keeps the house warm.

Were there any challenges involved?

It's actually very hard to design for yourself. I tried to look at it like I would any other job. We developed the design around our need to feel a lot of space on our smaller block. The back garden has been designed around a very old mango tree, which was a bit tricky at times.

How does your home fit into the older street?

In the street there are many old houses from the 1880s to 1960s, so we tried to downplay the exterior to make it fit in with its environment.

What's one of your favourite aspects?

The polished concrete floor is great; it looks like marble. We have a lot of grandchildren come to visit and they can ride their bikes through or come in from the pool and it's easy to clean up.

Lyn 

Did you have a lot of input in the design?

I had a fair degree of input in the design, as I do the interiors for the business.

What did you bring to the interior design?

I love colour. I used terracotta in the doors and warmed the living room by using rich earthy colours. My daughter wanted red and black in her room, which is quite different. I've used a blue in the kitchen that corresponds with the blues in the pool area.

Why was space a priority?

We had come from a larger acreage so we didn't want to feel boxed in. Everyone who comes in says they can't believe how much space there is. We've made it feel very open and not cluttered on a small block.

What do you like most about the home?

I love the fact that when I wake up in the morning I can throw open those bi-fold doors and let the world in.