Looking for a house design

Picking a house design is not an easy task when you have a large block that is also sloping. Not sloping in one direction but two. We realised we would have challenges with the block when we bought it but were always confident we would find what we wanted.

We had a list of 'wants':

• open spaces.
• large windows and lots of airflow. breezy.
• natural light.
• a space for indoor doing.
• room for a spa that didn't need a bush track to get to.
• welcoming.
• not big.
• not pretentious.
• be able to see outside while sitting in bed for the morning cuppa.
• maximise views of the mountains.

I also had the idea that the house had to sit 'in' the land rather than be pretentiously perched on it for all to see. It couldn't be like a concrete pimple on a bodybuilder's back. You get my meaning? John wanted a skillion roof from the very first discussion and I understood why. It gives a modern look and would also fit with my idea that the house had to look settled into the landscape. 

We found many photos and drawings online that we thought were the sort of thing we wanted. Here are some of our favourite picks. 

Storybook Designer Homes create homes with High Quality Traditional, Modern & Contemporary Architecture. 

This is a home built in the Samford Valley by baahouse to be a tropical retreat for a granny. It was the big verandahs with huge doors that appealed to us. 

This design by Pivot Homes was one that John found. We were impressed by the large verandah that seemed to float above the landscape. 


I found it very hard to accept that there wasn't a building company in SE Queensland that had the perfect design for us already in a project home. Why not? I think partly because there seems to be the need to squish as much home as possible on your average, now not very large city block. Surely 'acreage' homes would have what we wanted but I was disappointed there also because if you live on acreage you require 4 bedrooms, at least 3 toilets, study, media room, a few lounges, cellar and of course life cannot be lived without a butler's pantry. Note I have called it a butler's pantry not butlers' pantry. Doubt if I will have more than one butler in my lifetime. 

After weeks of searching and lamenting the fact that we might have to go to an architect or draftsperson, a design that looked like a good starting point was found with a GJGardner home. There were things we wanted to change but the bones were there along with 3 toilets for 2 people, 4 bedrooms, office, library and the inevitable scullery. Just another name for a butler's pantry.  

After weeks of back and forth with a patient chap at G. J Gardner, who couldn't quite believe that we didn't want 4 bedrooms, 3 toilets, a spa bath in the ensuite and a library but 'needed' a massive studio, we settled on the design. The garage has been moved to the western side of the house and the powder room has been removed. 

It isn't a big or fancy house. That is not what we want. 
Now we had to work out how to hang it off the hill. How much will be slab and how much stumps and where to plonk it on the property to minimise excavation and build costs, plus line up with the sun? That's enough house planning for one day. Check back soon for my next post.