The countryside residence favors simple, sustainable moves over square footage, and strategically captures views without walls of glass.
Melbourne designer David Noordhoff had already established a rhythm with clients James and Zara McGuffie long before he designed their home. Noordhoff and James had been the drummer and guitarist in a successful indie rock band, Kilns, before Noordhoff went off to architecture school.
So, when the couple purchased a small piece of land in Chewton, Australia, a town of 1,300 about 90 minutes outside Melbourne, they knew they wanted Noordhoff—despite being early in his career—to design a house that fit their lifestyle. “We just had a connection,” recalls James, who first met Noordhoff over 12 years ago.
The L-shaped Pyrenees residence features a substantial outdoor deck made with native spotted gum, which is resistant to bushfires.
Jade Cantwell
Zara and James had been living in Melbourne for over a decade, and they were looking to move outside the city when they discovered the parcel in the former mining town. Its location along the Pyrenees Highway seemed like a sign, because James had years earlier made a pilgrimage to walk Spain’s Camino de Santiago, through the Pyrenees mountain range.
The house sits near a highway, but robust insulation and windows help minimize noise, as does a foyer and hallway fronting the building.
Jade Cantwell
The site borders national park land, and it had recently been rezoned, so it was essentially a fresh slate. Zara and James initially considered hiring a homebuilding company, like others in the area, given the relatively remote location. “A lot of people told us we should do that because it was our first home; it’s easy and they make decisions for you,” Zara says. “We kind of just kind of stuck to our guns.”
| $68,000 Preliminary Work |
$150,000 Structure & Framing |
$14,000 Exterior Stairs & Decking |
| $22,000 Floor Finishes |
$60,000 Doors & Windows |
$15,000 Appliances |
| $40,000 Bathroom/Kitchen Fixtures & Joinery |
$16,000 Lighting Fixtures & Fans |
$22,000 Plumbing |
| $23,000 Electrical |
$18,000 Paint |
|
| Grand Total: $448,000 AUD ($289,681 USD) | ||
A simple kitchen gives way to a vintage dining table—one of many pieces Zara and James found online. Sliding glass doors help bring the outside in.
Jade Cantwell
See the full story on Dwell.com: Budget Breakdown: Near Melbourne, Former Bandmates Make a Modest House Sing for $290K
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