134 Charles Street, Northcote VIC 3070

We decided to move to Northcote when our first child was three years old and started throwing golf balls off the third story balcony of our townhouse in Fitzroy.  We figured it was time to find a bigger place with a decent back yard. With three boys now, we are glad we did! We immediately fell in love with all that Westgarth had to offer.

In 2008 we renovated the original part of the house. We re-stumped, re-wired, painted all of the rooms, and opened up the fourth room to create an open playroom/study. In 2011 we engaged Jeremy McCleod, of Breathe Architecture and Nightingale fame, to design our extension.  We chose Breathe because of their commitment to sustainability and for their ability to design exciting, clever and warm spaces.

We had two main goals when we designed the house: use the sloping block so that the kitchen and living areas engage with the back yard and design the home to be efficient and sustainable by bringing in light and air and by using environmentally friendly materials such as recycled timbers and concrete floors.

The water tank flushes the toilets and runs the washing machine and outdoor taps, cutting down on our water bills significantly. And the placement of windows and doors allows for amazing cross ventilation and airflow. Efficient heated floors keep the house warm in winter.

What we love about our house is how you can either tuck away with a book or a glass of wine in spaces like the dining booth or the window seat in the living room or engage with a big group of people around the kitchen bench, in the internal courtyard or around the big dining table.  We also love how much storage we have – tucked away under the dining booth, a full wall of cupboards in the dining room, and heaps of drawers in the living room and master bedroom.

We are within walking distance to two train lines, the 86 tram, Westgarth Cinema (we pop out the back roller door and can be at the movies in 2 minutes!), two sets of amazing shops at Westgarth and Ruckers Hill. Northcote High and excellent primary schools are minutes away.

We put our heart and soul into this house and hope the next owners will love it as much as we have.