Contemporary and relaxed – a Modern Coastal Renovation

What do you get when you take talented architects, a can-do builder and a family in desperate need of more space? The answer is a 1930s home transformed into a Modern Coastal masterpiece. Bringing together the old and new, this home in Hobart’s Sandy Bay will now undoubtedly stand the test of time.

Meet the Read family

Frazer and Amanda always wanted their property in Hobart’s Sandy Bay to be their ‘forever home’. They were always fond of the house — it’s views of the Derwent River and the surrounding suburb — and knew it was where they wanted to raise their family.

As their family grew — first they welcomed daughter Esther, followed by Faye and finally Martha — it was time to renovate their two-bedroom, one bathroom home.

Knocking down the home was never an option. “A lot of people thought that we should knock down the house and rebuild. That wasn’t something that we wanted to do at all,” says Amanda.

With the help of Daniel Lane and Bek Verrier from Preston Lane Architects, alongside Michael Boyes from MGB Construction, this modern renovation was about to exceed all expectations and reward their faith

Creating a Modern Coastal home

Creating a perfect Modern Coastal home that incorporated the original features of the home, complemented their lifestyle and suited the suburb, were all important considerations during the renovation process.

“It was important to us that the house actually fitted within the street really nicely,” says Frazer. “It also had to be something that we’d feel proud of coming home to.”

“Our builder and our architects were really, really involved with the whole process and they definitely got us on a lot of product choices,” shares Frazer.

Michael Boyes from MGB Construction, who has been in the construction industry for more than 40 years, explained the reasons behind his choices. “Linea™ Weatherboard was specified by the architect on this job, but as a builder, I’ve used it on other jobs where it was used to define the new extension of the house. It’s very easy to get a transition line between the old and the new, whether it’s brickwork or existing weatherboards.”

“What I like about Linea™ Weatherboard is the clean, smooth lines, seamless corners and just the ease of installation. They come in nice long, straight lengths and comparative to a timber weatherboard, there’s very little preparation. The boards go on, they’re fixed on, gapped and painted. And the good thing about it is that long term, there’s no rotting. They’re set for life.”

When it comes to paint, the Linea™ Weatherboard boards were coated in Wattyl’s Cattle Dog Cluster Quarter. Downstairs, the lower level of the home was painted to match Colorbond’s Monument steel.

“It really just gives a modern look,” adds Michael.

Frazer and Amanda agreed. Before they knew it, they too couldn’t get enough of Linea.

“We arrived at the Linea™ Weatherboard product because we knew where the board looked right. We understood the architect and the builder had both worked with it before and highly recommended it,” says Frazer. “And this was a no brainer to them. It was always the product that they were going to go with.”

“The Linea™ Weatherboard board felt relaxed and coastal,” adds Frazer.

“We lived in the house while it was being renovated, which was quite challenging and funny,” shares Amanda. “I think it was really great for the kids to live here and see how hard and clever people work. The girls really got to see how hard it is to make things and do things. I definitely think they look after the house better for that reason.”

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