Is there anyone among us city-slickers who didn’t dream of making a sea-change or a tree-change this year? 2020 was definitely the year for coveting a beachside shack, or doom scrolling Google Images for secluded cabins surrounded by trees.

In the midst of lockdown earlier this year, looking at pictures of off-the-beaten-track places was the closest thing to actually being there. Luckily, images of dreamy architecture is our domain! From tent houses in the Noosa hinterland, to an architect’s own totally mobile bushland cabin, here are the far-flung homes that allowed us to escape our own four walls, even if it was just for a second. The sweet escape!

After 20-plus years living in the one humble house, the owners of this property in Bellbrae, Victoria, were in need of an improved home to better support their recent retirement. 

The clients’ brief to Wiesebrock Architecture was multifaceted, calling for sustainable design measures, and a flexible floor plan suitable for the couple and regular guests. 

The young architecture studio created two pavilions in response, comprising the primary house and a guest pavilion. This second pavilion provides ample room for additional bedrooms, as well as a quiet space for one of the owners, who’s currently completing a PHD in literature. Talk about retirement goals!

When a trusting client, talented interior designer, and visionary architect come together, great things can happen! 

Case in point – the Living Screen house in North Bondi. Designed for a family who lived on the site for 18 years prior, CplusC Architectural Workshop, and interior designer Jase Sullivan, came together to create a new house making the most of the property’s long narrow site. 

The pièce de résistance is the lap pool featuring an internal facing glass wall (a late but standout addition to the project!), which invites ever-changing, dappled light into the home. 

Many people dream of having a grand old tree in their backyard, but they can sometimes throw up challenges!

The owners of this Fitzroy North home certainly didn’t want to remove their property’s beloved tree, but wanted a house and garden that better embraced the oak in all its glory, without impacting the dwelling.

Kennedy Nolan stepped in to devise a careful reworking of the existing Victorian house, which now feels embedded in its accompanying Amanda Oliver designed garden. 

If this house were a person, it would have definitely been the most popular kid in school. It would be the one with the flashiest light-up runners and fairy bread sandwiches for lunch and, without fail, it would have always had its birthday parties at McDonalds.

What we’re trying to say is: this is one damn cool house.  And you could be cool just by being associated with it. Considering it’s for sale, we’re all in with a shot…

Townhouses projects are a practical and relatively affordable way of responsibly increasing suburban density, but not all townhouses are created equal! 

In one of their first completed projects as a studio, Fowler and Ward took up the challenge, designing two beautiful, highly liveable, Thornbury townhouses shared by two generations on one subdivided block.

Let’s just say, there’s a reason this young architecture studio took out the Emerging Designer award at this year’s TDF + Laminex Design Awards!