Until its recent transformation by Lisa Breeze Architect, this California bungalow in Preston was looking tired, but the property had all the potential for a stunning family home.

‘It has such a sweet front facade, nicely proportioned rooms in the front of the home, and was well-sited in the middle of the block,’ says Lisa.

‘It has both a generous front yard and set back from the street, while plenty of space in the back for a single level extension and back garden.’

What was holding the home back was its 1970s lean to, which placed the living area at the centre of the floor plan, with only south-facing windows.

The clients engaged Lisa to rectify these issues and create more space for their young family.

‘They needed bedrooms for the kids, a spare room for interstate guests to double as a second living room, options for work from home spaces, and an open-plan living area with a strong connection to the backyard,’ says Lisa. ‘It was straightforward though well considered brief.’

A decent block size (495 square metres) allowed for a ground floor extension of the home while still leaving over 330 square metres for the front and back yards.

The 1970s lean-to housing the kitchen and laundry at the rear of the house was firstly removed, making way for an L-shaped addition.

The new open-plan kitchen, meals and living area spans the long side of the L-addition. This arm of the property receives northern sun, and extends into the garden, opening the living areas up to garden views, with direct access to a new outdoor entertaining area.

‘Locating it at the back allowed us to play with the room height as well,’ says Lisa of the extension.

‘The kid’s bathroom and study are located in an intermediary area between the main living room extension and the old house. In this area we needed to have lower ceilings due to the interface with the existing house and siting restrictions related to height.’

The existing five rooms at the front of the house were slightly reconfigured to house all bedrooms, with the original features maintained.

The material and colour palette of the extension draws on the original design of the brick house and its interesting 1930s detailing, such as the ‘swirly columns’ on the front porch.

‘On first seeing these old verandah columns I was excited in thinking about the creative things that used to be built using brick and render,’ says Lisa. ‘I was keen to mirror this idea with the extension to play with texture in a similar way.

‘The owners were also very keen on the idea of a brick extension and enthusiastic to bring colour all through the interior of the home.’

Variations in colour throughout the interior work to visually define spaces and inspire joy, spanning pale green for the parents spaces, deep green for the kids, and ocean blue for the guest bedrooms.

‘For the living area and kitchen, the space opens right up as you pass through the intermediary area, and here we explored even more colour and a diversified material palette,’ says Lisa.

‘It’s not every day that you propose a salmon-coloured kitchen and the idea is embraced and then realised!’

The owners have already lived in the home for a decade, but renovations have cemented the property as their forever home.

‘While they have a young family and lead busy work and social lives, they are set to be comfortable and organised for the future,’ says Lisa.