Butterfly Beach House Renovation | Dustin Leaney

We were presented with the unique challenge of transforming a leaky 80's brick box into a coastal retirement retreat, when the owners said, "we want all the luxury we enjoy in our architect designed country retreat but without the lawn mowing."

Inspired by the natural elegance of butterfly wings, the roof took shape, opening up to the views to the East and the Sun to the North.  The materials palette also took inspiration from the monarch butterfly, with off-white render, black window frames and the natural orange hues of timber throughout.  In addition to this, the home is now residence to the owners art collection from their extensive travels (like the Monarch Butterfly).

The home has been designed with aging in place in mind, incorporating single level living upstairs that is accessed by a central lift, as well as via. the feature stair well in the entry.  The two storey entry foyer features a castellated batten wall which forms a division between the public and private spaces of the home.  Another feature of the foyer is the pendant light fitting which has been crafted from local sea kelp.

Upstairs the open plan living area faces East picking up ocean glimpses through the coastal heath, while large sliding glass doors open onto an expansive deck creating a seamless indoor/outdoor living area which takes full advantage of the sublime climate of the mid-north coast of NSW.

The transformation of this brick box family holiday house into a luxurious coastal retirement retreat has exceeded the owners expectations.  They now live a very comfortable and relaxed low-maintenance lifestyle, which includes walking the dogs on the beach each morning, and a relaxing surf whenever the waves are up.