Everlasting—21st Century Reno for Classic Californian Bungalow

When the iconic Californian bungalows swept through Melbourne’s suburbs during the 1920s and 30s, few knew it would inspire a love affair so everlasting.

Solid and unassuming with a lack of frills, the affectionately nicknamed ‘Cal bungs’ are a much-loved house style with deep front verandahs, heavy pylon-shaped posts and subtle timber detailing.

Even their lesser attributes, including bad zoning, limited sustainability and dim lighting are no match for renovators who can’t see past the often-spacious blocks and interiors designed for modern, informal living.

Enter Chris Stanley, of Splinter Society Architecture, who’s renovated so many Cal bungs over the last 15 years – including seven in one Coburg street alone – he created what he refers to as the ‘Bungalow series’.

“It’s a renovation to a classic Californian Bungalow,” Chris says.

“For people who have limited funds but want to do the absolute best they can to make happy, social spaces.”

On a broader level, the bungalows present a modern yet respectful response to the common housing style, while staying true to their heritage roots. “These houses are a really good reflection of how to have a small budget on a spot in a city suburban site.”

This project, Bungalow 8, in Elwood, is a perfect example. The family home is an adaptive reuse of as much of the original structure and layout as possible, namely the wide, central corridor at the front, which opens to three rooms and a big main bathroom.

As always, Chris’ first exercise is to dig deep into the plan to uncover inefficiency. First, he split the bathroom into an ensuite and the kids’ bathroom, and then turned the second bedroom into a flexible lounge room.

“When you’re working on a small budget, it’s about using that same set value of space and openness without having to build a lot more, which costs about $2000-plus per square metre,” he says.

Next, he tackles zoning. “Hands-down, our approach is about that relationship to the backyard,” he says. “Typically, we look at how we can connect and utilise space not just within the house but also the whole site.”

Here, instead of simply building a standard box on the back, he created a new, modern rear addition that cuts along the site in a triangular shape, which cleverly repositions the primary living zones to the north.

It comprises a new lounge, central kitchen, dining, study with a laundry behind sliding doors, and a shed with storage. “It’s a sort of hybrid open-plan where we put the kitchen between the living spaces. The kitchen is a buffer so that you can have different activities in the one zone without interrupting each other,” he says.

In doing so, the house is now well connected to natural light and opens up seamlessly to the outside for the family to enjoy. “The architecture promotes constant connection to landscaped gardens for exercise and safe areas for children to play,” Chris says.

Lastly, he brings a rich human experience to the way he designs social spaces, informed by his extensive work in hospitality, including Howler Bar and Performing Arts Hub in Brunswick and Cutler & Co. in Fitzroy.

“A really big one for us is that we love natural imperfections in materials,” he says. “We love stone with cracks and fissures, and natural materials that show their characteristics.”

For example, the rear addition is two steps down from the existing house on a concrete slab, not only providing thermal mass and passive heating and cooling, but also a subtle demarcation between the house’s public and private spaces.

“These houses suffer from a lack of thermal mass, but it’s really important from a common temperature regulating aspect. A slab is also a beautiful thing to live with year-round,” he says. The rest of the house is finished with a simple and affordable palette of timber and stone.

Another great example is the central timber joinery element suspended from the bulkhead, which connects the kitchen/dining zones and integrates with the backyard.

“We’ve always been conscious and aware of what makes people happy in space,” he says. “The bungalows are affordable, sustainable and make comfortable family homes, adapting to the simple joys of evolving family life.”

Inside issue 79 — Grab the issue here.