Tuesday 1 April 2014

Buying a modernist house in Brisbane

If you had said to me on New Year's Day that by April we would be living in a modernist home in Brisbane, I would've said you were crazy. Moving out of the Sow's Ear was really not on our list of things to do in 2014...especially as we were planning on building a swimming pool for next summer!

Alas, those plans were put on hold after Jason and I went to visit a mid-century house for a bit of fun one Saturday morning. I had seen the real estate ad online and wanted to check out the place as there was a cool DQF dining table and chairs in some of the photos. Ha! I wanted to see the furniture more than the house.

It was like an absolute revelation to us when we rocked up to that first open house inspection. The house was fairly anonymous looking from the front, but as soon as Jason and I walked through the door we realised we had stumbled on something very special.
central ceiling/roof support, with Jason artfully blurred

At first, the interior reminded me a little of the Hayes and Scott designed Jacobi House (click on link) due to the central pyramid ceiling. The entire interior was virtually like a mid-century time capsule: original light fittings; the wood panelled ceilings, timber doors, timber cabinetry and walls were all untouched by paint. The hardwood floors were in great condition too, as were the terrazzo floors on the patio and in the wet areas.

front entry
The more we looked at the house, the more Jason and I liked it - the floor plan was ideal for our family, with four decent sized bedrooms away from the main living/dining area.

I knew it was meant to be when I opened up the kitchen cupboards and saw the Midwinter Stonehenge Sun cups and plates. A sign from the mid-century gods.

We were also attracted to the fact there is also little work required to restore this house back to its former glory - it just needs some TLC, which we have in abundance!

The shower room which apparently has the original tiles. The racing track is black, red, white and gold flecked mosaic tiles

Many larger modernist homes can be quite daunting for the average Joe with the amount of work required to restore and maintain them. We are fortunate our new house is in relatively good structural condition for its age, it is reasonably modest in its size and most importantly it had not been unsympathetically renovated beyond recognition over the years.

We found out the house had been designed by a noteworthy Brisbane architect which made it an even more attractive prospect. Needless to say we made an offer on the house pronto and things moved incredibly quickly after that! And here we are now, living the modernist dream in suburban Brisbane!

As an aside, I just wanted to give a shout out to our mortgage broker, David Amies, who has been helping us for the past 16 years whenever we have had to obtain finance or refinance our loans. He's an absolute gentleman and extremely thorough - we were able to obtain finance very quickly thanks to David's diligence. We could not recommend him highly enough if you are in the market. 

26 comments:

  1. Hello:

    How absolutely exciting this both sounds and looks. There is something very satisfying in discovering, and then having the opportunity to live in, a real period piece. We shall much look forward to further updates.

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    1. Oh Jane and Lance! So glad you dropped by. We are over the moon with our new home. You'll have to join us on the patio for a martini or two. xx

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  2. How exciting!
    I can not wait to hear all about your new home :)

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    1. Thanks so much Jenny. It is very cool and will be a great place to live. xx

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  3. So envious - this house looks sublime! Congrats:)

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  4. I'm so pleased that not only did you find the house of your midcentury dreams but also that your house found you guys, who would appreciate every single modernist quirk. Just like the wand chooses the wizard, I believe that a house chooses the owner! . mel x

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    1. Ha! Yes, the house chose the owner in this instance. Thanks so much, Mel. And yes, there are many mid-century quirks which we will have to get used to! xx

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  5. How exciting! I love the beginning of an adventure, and this one was obviously meant to be.
    xx

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    1. Yes, put your go-go boots on and enjoy the ride! xx

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  6. Very happy for you both xx

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    1. Thanks Jenny. It will be a new fun adventure for us. xx

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  7. More pics please! The ones on instagram are sooo tiny and I want to see more of your lovely new Modernist abode!
    (even though I am wracked - should there be w? - with jealousy)
    x

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    1. I've got the bloggin mojo back so stay tuned. There will be lots of photos coming. xx

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  8. Glad that you are enjoying it so much! xx

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  9. I'm incredibly pleased for you and your family. As I read your Sow's Ear posts, I was amazed by the planning and skill that went into your projects. I knew you loved that house (and still do), but I also knew you were torn by your love for mid-century design. Now you'll have wonderful memories of working together to make your Queenslander beautiful, as well as the experience of turning your new modernist home into a showplace. Very few people have the opportunity to live in two such wonderful period homes. You deserve it, because you're willing to show so much respect for their original design and give them so much of your time and attention. Be happy in your new home!

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    1. Dana, so true. We do count ourselves fortunate to be in the position to have lived in such wonderful homes. I will always have a soft spot for the Sow's Ear but I do think this new house will be a great place to live as the boys grow older. xx

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  10. I too am really pleased that you have found your dream home. As much as you loved the Sow's ear, somehow it didn't feel quite right for you. As soon as I saw the post about buying the mid-century home, I knew you were in the right place. All is right with the world now. We found ourselves in a similar situation - but different. We bought a mid-century house on a huge block of land so we could subdivide and design and build an eco-friendly, industrial-looking, quirky house. We moved into the 1970s- built, Ken Woolley-designed house while we did the subdivision and fell in love with it - and ditched the building idea. We have stayed as true as we could to the original - oddly, it didn't have hardwood floors, so we replaced them with bamboo - and it looks good. The kitchen was replaced in the 80s, so my challenge now is to redo the kitchen - should I go for all white 'formica' or polished wood? I suspect that it would have been formica - and I do like an all white, light and bright kitchen. Anyway, I'm really looking forward to following your progress and will be interested in every little thing that you do.
    Cheers
    Jane
    PS I didn't intend to post as anon but something odd is going on with my Google account.

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    1. Ha! No worries Jane. Thanks for your comment. So true that all is right with the world now. The planets have aligned! How cool that you have a Ken Woolley designed home. I'd love to see some photos. Sounds like your kitchen underwent the same fate as our kitchen. It had an 80s revamp which seems at odds with the rest of the house - anyway, it is perfectly functional in the meantime... I will be keen to hear what you end up doing for your kitchen. xx

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    2. Yes, I feel pretty lucky to have a Ken Woolley designed house, albeit it a small one. There is one old pantry cupboard in the kitchen which is white 'formica' - (the penny only dropped yesterday that it's original - duh!) - so that's what I'll try to emulate. Decision made. Like you, I can cope with the kitchen as it is for now as it's quite functional. Looking forward to seeing what you do with yours. xx

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  11. I'm just wrapt that you've found a fabulous house and you're happy!...oh and that you've kept the sow's ear...the old girl was too good to pass on to someone else after all the work you've put into her...
    Congrats big time!!!
    Lesley
    xx

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    1. Yes, we were lucky to be able to keep the old house.I think it would have been snapped up by a developer and probably knocked down if we had sold it... Thanks Lesley. xx

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  12. Wow, brave decision! To be honest, I think I would have done it too. If something feels right like that, and you can do it, why not? Moving is a fresh start, most people hate it but I love it. Personally, I dream of renovating either an old Queenslander or a warehouse! Not sure if it will ever happen but I will for sure try.

    I am originally from Sweden, a neuroscientist and lecturer at QUT; I have lived here for 13 years now and this city is now Home. I write a blog called Lily of the Valley Brisbane together with some friends, also Brisbanites, some born here, others from elsewhere but have lived here for some time. I love Brisbane's hills, its Queenslander houses, the way the moon hangs so low in the sky, the multiculturalism, and most of all, the People of Brisbane. There is something about Brisbanites; a mix of compassion of humor that I have never before come across.

    Here is our blog address in case someone is interested:

    http://www.lilyofthevalleybrisbane.com


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    1. Hi Jenny, thanks for your comment. I'll be sure to check out your blog. xx

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  13. I'm loving the wooden finishes to this modern house! I can see a lot of potential for remodeling and personalizing this wonderful abode! Congratulations on finding the best broker in town and the perfect home for all your needs; not everyone can be as lucky! Have fun in your new home!

    Kristen Rogers @ Riverway Title

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