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| Original sandstone exterior of the Blue Magnolia |
Modernising Heritage Buildings
It’s always a bit of a challenge in Tasmania to retain the historic charm of a place, yet still make it user -friendly and adapted to modern living. People are busy. Both men and women work outside the home. We need our washing machines, our dishwashers and indoor bathrooms. When we come home we want to relax with our computers and televisions.
One of the few places I managed to visit during this year’s Architecture Week which ran from late October to mid-November, was the “Blue Magnolia," once part of a conjoined pair of sandstone row houses in an internal block dating from the 1840s. Sadly, not many of their contemporaries have survived because they were knocked down over the years as the city expanded.
Subtraction and Addition
This pair had already undergone an unsympathetic renovation in the 1980s. The buildings had been partially merged into one and many of their original features such as the second doorway and one of the staircases had already been removed. The latest renovation merges them into a single property and includes a plain dark timber addition which sets off the warm tones of the old stonework.
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| Part of the New Addition |
-Image courtesy of Rosa Douramanis
Architect Rosa Douramanis explains,
Upstairs, the area next to the void (where the original upper-level staircase was located) contained a small bedroom enclosed by walls on either side of the chimney, along the staircase and the small corridor at the stair landing. The door and walls to the larger bedroom were also removed to create a more free-flowing, light-filled space that now functions as a changing area and a small sitting area as well as allowing for a free flowing open access to the new bedroom."
Where walls have been opened up, you can see how very small and dark the individual dwellings would have been, though the high ceilings are now used to great effect, with the skylights not only letting light,, but glimpses of nature.
The remaining stairway had been particularly narrow and gloomy, so architect Rosa Douramanis, opened it right up with a dramatic staircase in light wood and a skylight overhead. In the former loft it meets the rich dark timber of the solid original flooring. A spacious if somewhat austere bathroom flanks the far side of the bedroom.
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| Light floods in above the stairwell |
-Image courtesy of Rosa Douramanis
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| Storage and change area near the top of the stairs |
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| A comfortable bed awaits on the other side |
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| Another skylight illuminates the bathroom which also features a bath. Elemental properties - wood and stone predominate, along with that ever -changing sky |
Style and Comfort
In the lounge immediately below there was casual, colourful furniture, not at all what I expected, but not so precious that you didn’t dare to relax in it either, and complemented by a few well -chosen pieces. The owners chose their own furniture. It is an Air B & B after all, not a museum.
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| The furniture in the lounge below immediately made me smile and think "family room." Having travelled extensively with children, I almost breathed a sigh of relief |
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| Great to have the architect on site to explain what how it was and what was done. Thank you | Rosa! |
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