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When Complete Thought Studio’s clients purchased this Mosman apartment, the interiors had been previously subject to a somewhat ‘heavy-handed, unsympathetic renovation’, and the property came with council approval for more alterations in future.
The architects and clients rejected this proposal entirely, instead devising a quasi-renovation reversal to uncover heritage features of the unit — part of an Art and Crafts house built circa 1891 and converted into apartments circa 1928 — while preparing the space for the future.
The design process started three years before the clients moved in, back when the property was still on the market, to test its feasibility. Complete Thought Studio architect Michelle Dunas explains, ‘We undertook an initial review to assess if what they wanted to achieve was possible, and we resolved the main design moves and layout changes as a part of this.’
The property was purchased then rented out for two years, during which time design was developed, documented, put through the necessary approvals, and tendered for construction.
Construction itself took roughly eight months, comprising a reconfiguration of the two-bedroom, two-bathroom floor plan, and major cosmetic facelift.
Complete Thought Studio’s key move was swapping the location of the second bedroom and kitchen — the former located directly adjacent the living and dining spaces, and the latter in the far corner of the apartment.
This update allowed for renovation’s primary structural change — removing a dividing wall — to create a unified and more generous kitchen, dining, and living space connected to the apartment courtyard.
The original bathroom and laundry area were also reconfigured to create a main bathroom, concealed laundry, and compact en suite connected to the second bedroom. New flooring was installed throughout, addressing level changes and tying spaces together, and new joinery was inserted in the main bedroom.
In reinstating period features, the architects looked to the building’s past, while being conscious of the clients’ future intentions to downsize and age in the space.
Michelle explains, ‘Having lived for many years in a larger scale heritage house, it seemed to be the heritage features that served as the link between their current home and their future.
‘The design vision was about amplifying the features that attracted them, and providing a comfort in this familiarity whilst also pointing the way to a future possibility, a new way of living.’
The project name ‘Astor, and so it becomes a dance’ is both a reference to this balance and the name of the Mosman building.
‘The idea of the “dance” is rooted in the dialogue that forms between the existing building and the new interventions,’ says Michelle.
‘Each design move is informed by an observation of the existing, a gesture picked up on and reflected back into the home. There becomes a rhythm that forms between the old and the new, a balance of opportunities for restoration, for framing and for juxtaposition. It all amounts into something that we can only describe as a dance.’
Among restored features is the archway surrounding the new dining bay. ‘This arch was previously truncated by a dividing wall that was removed, allowing for the plaster moulding around the arch to be completed and for the feature to now sit in the centre of the space,’ says Michelle.
‘The decorative corbel and detailing on the arch were carefully hand-restored matching the existing plaster profile.’
Sash windows, including those above the dining nook and in the main bedroom, were repaired, with draft-sealing incorporated into the frames to improve the home’s thermal performance. Matching skirtings and cornices were also reinstated, in conjunction with new chevron flooring for a cohesive period feel.
‘The client also became quite involved in this process and restored the existing brass door hardware and period lights themselves,’ says Michelle. Beyond physical restorations, the introduction of green accents throughout — as seen across the living room cupboards, bathroom tiles, and Esmerelda quartzite kitchen island bench with brass inlay detail — nods to the restrained use of ornamentation found in the arts and crafts style.
‘The design of the kitchen bench was driven by the curved arch motif borrowed from the original detailing as well the design constraints of the compact space and wanting to give it a feel of elevation — only gently touching the ground,’ says Michelle.
‘[The bench] was finely crafted by Interior Marble Projects, exactly as we’d designed, where others had said this wouldn’t be achievable.’
The apartment’s improved liveability is evident in an anecdote shared by the clients with the architects: ‘They thought that they had accidentally left the lights on in the living room, only to discover that they were all off, and that the light was simply coming through the (now unencumbered) windows — a testament to the transformation from the previous dreary state,’ says Michelle.
‘Whilst it’s a modest scale of home, not every inch is programmed — some spaces work hard so that others can breathe. Ultimately this is what the “and so it becomes a dance” is about.’
