Embroidered – Skillion-Roofed Pavilion

The state this house began in could only be described as derelict. Crumbling brick walls, a precarious structure, a leaky roof and years of neglect made it barely habitable. In fact, it was in such a state that many would simply opt to raze the entire thing to the ground and start anew. But Melbourne practice CARD Studio, led by Tahj Rosmarin and Jimi Connor, saw its potential. “It had been a squat for 20 years, yet behind the decay there were redeeming heritage features worth saving,” Tahj recalls.

With a modest budget, CARD Studio approached the brief as an opportunity to test its philosophy: do more with less and build in ways that allow homes to endure. The project unfolded in three phases. First the restoration of the cottage, then the extension, finishing with the interiors. From the street, the house is restored with a distinct sensitivity to the surrounding vernacular. “The streetscape was full of near-identical cottages, some lovingly restored, and others neglected,” Jimi says. “Restoring that rhythm was a priority.” Timber sash windows have been reinstated, roof tiles replaced, and the front verandah is an inviting place to perch. These small but important gestures maintain continuity with the surrounding heritage fabric.

At the rear, a new skillion-roofed pavilion soars over the kitchen, dining and living areas. The form is simple but deliberately opens to the northern aspect, framing the sky and a neighbour’s tree. Plus, deep eaves give the added benefit of shading the summer sun and inviting winter light. “The roof is the main idea. It captures northern light while refining the building’s edge. We didn’t want a bulky addition, it needed to feel light and precise,” Tahj explains.

Materiality is stripped back to essentials: cement sheeting, corrugated Colorbond, hardwood timbers and polished concrete. Each is left raw, chosen as much for their durability as their affordability, with the inherent nature of these materials allowed to shine through – no painting or oiling required. With this simple foundation, the details are where the architecture happens.

And that detail is everywhere – in the sweep of a roof rafter that is echoed on the sliding door handles, gutters that dissolve from view, and a curved internal wall concealing the laundry. These gestures elevate the house beyond its means. The extension totals just 90 square metres, so the garden became central to the experience of the house. Large sliding doors and a pop-out awning window blur the thresholds. “The idea was to make the garden feel like part of the house,” Jimi explains. “The façade can be fully opened or adjusted in segments; and the awning window might be a breakfast bar one day, a DJ booth the next.”

The landscape, designed in collaboration with Jimi’s brother Jack, reinforces this fluidity. Salvaged bricks from the dilapidated outhouse are stacked into new garden walls, the patina linking past and present. The yard is divided into zones, anchored by a brick seat, a patch of lawn, a gravel fire pit, a shed, and an outdoor dining area. “We wanted more than just a big lawn. The landscape needed to extend the house, to double the usable space,” Jimi shares.

Robust sustainability strategies underpin the home. Passive design principles drove the extension: carefully placed glazing, cross-ventilation, eaves tuned to solar orientation, and a highly insulated building envelope. The cottage, unable to be fully retrofitted, gained new plaster that thickened and stabilised its brick walls while the extension was wrapped and counter-battened for maximum thermal performance. Gas was eliminated entirely in favour of a hot water heat pump and split-system heating and cooling, with infrastructure in place for future solar panels and EV charging.

For the architects, Coburg House exemplifies a thoughtful, contextual and unpretentious ethos. “We like working to budget constraints. It forces you to think outside the box, you focus on what really matters,” Tahj reflects. The clients, who have now lived in the home for almost a year, describe the expansive northern window as their “TV”. Sunsets spill across the ceiling, and the day’s rhythms are charted by shifting light. “You’re always aware of time passing,” says Jimi. “At night, the glass reflects the interior back, creating a completely different atmosphere.”

Coburg House is both modest and ambitious. Proof that budgets can be wielded into something that exudes craft and intention. It is, as Tahj describes, “a compact, human-scaled home that connects to its place.”

“Restoring that rhythm was a priority.”

Inside issue 106 — Grab the issue here.