Chinaman’s beach house scope

Elsa,

It was so lovely to meet you and to see the house a few short months into the move! I know that with a house this size, it is a daunting task to realise the potential in a way that feels totally authentic - turning a house into a home requires a nuanced and complex strategy that takes into account a range of factors ranging from style decisions, furniture, soft furnishings, lighting… to budget and timelines. With a very busy life and large family to run in tandem with this, outsourcing is a power move!!

You and Chris have the opportunity here to create something spectacular - a home for your family in one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. The best way to achieve your goals with the property is plan and then stage its transformation. I’d very much lke to be part of that process.

The following is a scope reflecting our preliminary meeting - it is a rough outline of the issues as you see them and the directions we might consider in the grand scheme. It is a starting point from which we will develop a comprehensive vision for the direction we will take to reach the point where you feel totally - at home.

So let’s get started.

Entry:

Being brutally honest, I’d have to say the entry point to this spectacular house is…. underwhelming. For a big house, there is a lot of wasted space that has resulted in compromised rooms and pretty inefficient use of area. A house of this calibre should have a beautiful and generous entry!

This is the first impression your home gives of the interior - and this is a rather mean hallway that says nothing about what this property is all about. So I have been thinking…

Re-imagining the floor plan doesn’t have to be a huge deal, but it does have to be clever. There are some inherent problems with the layout of the house that I have been considering and I would like you to consider the following.

You have four bedrooms downstairs and your youngest child sleeping on this level, which in itself can be problematic due to noise disturbance when you’re entertaining. Wouldn’t it be batter if all four kids bedrooms were downstairs?
Creating a master suite on this level makes a lot of sense, and there is space to do this! A beautiful new bedroom, walk in robe and ensuite.
Chris may or may not be willing to have a custom designed office that suits his needs exactly, as it may mean giving up his view - but this whole area could be configured to be just about you and Chris. How you enjoy the view is a matter for you two to decide - you don’t get to appreciate it at night, and if Chris works from home a lot, maybe you decide it’s better to leave the study where it is. But maybe those weekend sleep-in mornings would be even more decadent if you enjoy the harbour with your breakfast in bed…

You can appreciate in the two photos above just how wasted space there is and how dark the current entry hall is. IF you can imagine the new entry deleting the curved wall, you can see how it would better centralise the front door, and allow us to use its previous location in our reconfiguring of the master suite.

This is a suggestion - if it doesn’t resonate with you then that is totally fine - I’ll get busy with a design for the existing!

The Living Room:

The aim here would be to make this vast room feel intimate and fill it with character and comfort. Right now, the muddy grey is not our friend. We spoke about the outdated notion of dining rooms - how they take up one of the best rooms of anyones house to be used how often?? Hardly ever.

So…. I mentioned the used of partition joinery - that which demarcates zones without robbing light or making big airy spaces feel small. I think this would work well to section off the area where the fireplace is from the larger end of this room.

Further re-imagining of the floor plan… the fireplace is lovely and cosy, it’s actually where you want to be in winter, so why save it for a ‘formal’ living area? Would you consider making THIS area where the tv is? If we did that, you’d get to snuggle with the kids or enjoy the space alone, all the time, not just when you entertain.

This is another instance of the fundamental inefficiency of the floorplan as it exists now - with so much available space, you’re left with rooms that are not really big enough!! But by thinking outside the square, we can totally change this perception.

The lovely leather modular is cramped in here - we need to see it to properly appreciate it!

The area is ENORMOUS and the view is breathtaking, yet you walk past it and don’t get to really enjoy it because it is set up for the odd occasion when you entertain. Let’s put the lovely modular here - allow it open the space, add curtains, chunky wool rugs, the warm glow of lamplight and the richness of everyday family enjoyment!

And this piece of joinery? Neither use nor ornament. (I warned you I’m blunt!!). What aout floor to ceiling wine racks here? Or bookcases, as we discussed, with cupboards below and open shelving above. This piece as it is, is asking for large ornaments - it’s shooting blanks. Delete!!

The music room:

I know that you’ve already purchased the modular in here, but I am not convinced that this room justifies its footprint. It looks like a compromise.

So… if we chop off the curvy part of the room for the new entrance, the part that fits the tv and nothing else, then we are left with a small room suitable for the piano lessons, and a wall of bookshelves and an armchair - a perfect quiet reading room, or not so quiet piano lesson space. We make it groovy, not too dark, but bespoke in style and usage. You might even think about putting a desk in here as part of the joinery - it could be used as an office space for you Elsa, a sort of household HQ - paying bills, organising school stuff, etc etc. I know that you enjoyy working with Chris in his space, but this might work as an alternative for the everyday stuff.

The furniture can be moved somewhere else in the house, it’s a lovely colour and looks very comfortable. The very full bookcase above right clearly evidences your need for joinery! Planning for this will be a critical exercise to ensure you have ample storage.

The Kitchen:

A big house for a big family needs a big kitchen - and that is not what you currently have!

This will be a great joy to design with you - as we discussed in our meeting, by expanding right along the back wall, leaving the sink where it is, and adding a large central island bench that gives you all the bench space in the world but also allows for a breakfast bar - we can create a substantially bigger, more efficient and upgraded kitchen befitting a home of this calibre. An island bench is a fabulous addition to a kitchen in a house of teenagers especially, that precious time we enjoy when cooking with kids sitting watching, talking to us about their world…. no eye contact… easy and informal revelations can tumble out freely!!

This is a big house for

Chinaman’s beach house scope

Elsa,

You and Chris have the opportunity here to create something spectacular - a home for your family in one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. The best way to achieve your goals with the property is plan and then stage its transformation. I’d very much lke to be part of that process.

So let’s get started.

Entry:

Being brutally honest, I’d have to say the entry point to this spectacular house is…. underwhelming. For a big house, there is a lot of wasted space that has resulted in compromised rooms and pretty inefficient use of area. A house of this calibre should have a beautiful and generous entry!

This is the first impression your home gives of the interior - and this is a rather mean hallway that says nothing about what this property is all about. So I have been thinking…

Re-imagining the floor plan doesn’t have to be a huge deal, but it does have to be clever. There are some inherent problems with the layout of the house that I have been considering and I would like you to consider the following.

You have four bedrooms downstairs and your youngest child sleeping on this level, which in itself can be problematic due to noise disturbance when you’re entertaining. Wouldn’t it be batter if all four kids bedrooms were downstairs?

Creating a master suite on this level makes a lot of sense, and there is space to do this! A beautiful new bedroom, walk in robe and ensuite.

This is a suggestion - if it doesn’t resonate with you then that is totally fine - I’ll get busy with a design for the existing!

The Living Room:

The aim here would be to make this vast room feel intimate and fill it with character and comfort. Right now, the muddy grey is not our friend. We spoke about the outdated notion of dining rooms - how they take up one of the best rooms of anyones house to be used how often?? Hardly ever.

So…. I mentioned the used of partition joinery - that which demarcates zones without robbing light or making big airy spaces feel small. I think this would work well to section off the area where the fireplace is from the larger end of this room.

This is another instance of the fundamental inefficiency of the floorplan as it exists now - with so much available space, you’re left with rooms that are not really big enough!! But by thinking outside the square, we can totally change this perception.

The lovely leather modular is cramped in here - we need to see it to properly appreciate it!

And this piece of joinery? Neither use nor ornament. (I warned you I’m blunt!!). What aout floor to ceiling wine racks here? Or bookcases, as we discussed, with cupboards below and open shelving above. This piece as it is, is asking for large ornaments - it’s shooting blanks. Delete!!

The music room:

I know that you’ve already purchased the modular in here, but I am not convinced that this room justifies its footprint. It looks like a compromise.

The furniture can be moved somewhere else in the house, it’s a lovely colour and looks very comfortable. The very full bookcase above right clearly evidences your need for joinery! Planning for this will be a critical exercise to ensure you have ample storage.

The Kitchen:

A big house for a big family needs a big kitchen - and that is not what you currently have!

This is a big house for