Where to position the house on the land is the next big question. Ideally we would want the house to sit in the lower half reasonably close to the road and for the back of the house to face due north. This way we would make the most of the space and have the best orientation to the sun to the north and views to the east.
The problem is that the land has a slope running up to the north-west. To keep the costs of removing soil and building retaining walls down, we should build in this direction. This puts the house 45 degrees west of north.
In order to get the most out of solar panels (either for hot water or electricity) they shouldn't be positioned any further than 30 degrees west of north. So that's my starting point (see below). If we can afford to build any closer to north that would be great.
To make sure that we get the most out of our views the house needs to be positioned as high up the hill as possible. I have placed it about half way up which creates a 40m driveway!
Now we will just have to wait and see what the builder thinks and the soil tests uncover.
Tuesday 30 August 2011
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Saturday 27 August 2011
Doors, Handles & Locks
I have always had a clear idea of what I like in terms of doors and handles, so fortunately it didn't take me long too find what I was looking for.
All of the doors inside will be white and the door furniture bright chrome with square backplates wherever possible.
The Corinthian Infinity INF4 Double Front Doors...
with Gainsborough Pull Handle And Lever Set...
The Corinthian Impressions CMB Internal Door...
with Gainsborough Aero Passage Set...
and when required the Gainsborough Square Privacy Set...
When used as sliding doors with the Gainsborough Rectangular Corner Flush Pull...
or in the bathrooms with the Square Sliding Cavity Door Lock...
The Gainsborough Aero Leverset Single Cylinder will look good on the laundry door...
and for a little extra safety I like the look of the Paradigm 005 Deadbolt for all the external doors...
All of the doors inside will be white and the door furniture bright chrome with square backplates wherever possible.
The Corinthian Infinity INF4 Double Front Doors...
with Gainsborough Pull Handle And Lever Set...
The Corinthian Impressions CMB Internal Door...
with Gainsborough Aero Passage Set...
and when required the Gainsborough Square Privacy Set...
When used as sliding doors with the Gainsborough Rectangular Corner Flush Pull...
or in the bathrooms with the Square Sliding Cavity Door Lock...
The Gainsborough Aero Leverset Single Cylinder will look good on the laundry door...
and for a little extra safety I like the look of the Paradigm 005 Deadbolt for all the external doors...
The Kitchen
After discussing the design and layout of the home with the builder it's now time to put together the look of the interior.
Starting with the kitchen seems like as good an idea as any. The previous rental that we lived in had a beautiful kitchen with a layout that I liked, so I have based our plan on it. It's a large galley style kitchen with the oven and fridge at each end of one side, and an island bench containing the sink and dishwasher. The hob is positioned between oven and fridge. After years of trying to cook with a single oven and 60cm hob I have specially selected a double oven and 90cm gas hob. It should be a pleasure to cook in.
The island bench provides a great spot for breakfast or chatting with the cook. The lower units will be mainly draws for ease of use, and the overhead cupboards will be without handles for a sleek look.
A small desk area will give the laptop, mobile phone chargers, to-do and shopping lists a home. This area will double up for pouring drinks when we are entertaining, with the glasses being stored in the overhead cupboard.
A neutral pallet of colours with gloss finishes will hopefully create a smart look that won't date too quickly, and complement our flooring and furniture.
The kitchen cupboards, worksurface and splashback that we have chosen are made by Laminex.
The cupboards are CrystalGloss in Pumice...
The worksurface is DiamondGloss in Limestone...
I had expected to use the worksurface as the splashback but it is unfortunately not flame retardant. The solution is the aluminium based Metaline splashback in the brand new colour Regal Cream. I'll add a colour sample once it's available.
We will of course have downlights in the ceiling and under the overhead cupboards, but we may also have a white LED strip light under the island bench. Could look pretty cool in the evening.
The Electrolux E: Line Double Oven (EUEE63CS)...
The Omega 90cm Gas Cooktop (OG92XA)...
We will use an undermount rangehood that you cannot see when facing the cupboards. I think that it is a very neat alternative to visible retractable hoods. It may be the Omega 70cm Undermount Rangehood...
We will also buy a new semi-integrated or integrated dishwasher. The microwave space has been considered with the view to install a built-in version when our existing one breaks.
I have tried to find an inset sink that has the same simple lines as an undermount sink, which we can't have as our worksurface will not be waterproof when cut. I have gone for the Afa Exact 792 Inset Double Sink...
The Phoenix Cruise Range Deluxe Sink Mixer Tap will be joined by a Waterways Drinking Water Purifier and a built in Soap Dispenser.
Starting with the kitchen seems like as good an idea as any. The previous rental that we lived in had a beautiful kitchen with a layout that I liked, so I have based our plan on it. It's a large galley style kitchen with the oven and fridge at each end of one side, and an island bench containing the sink and dishwasher. The hob is positioned between oven and fridge. After years of trying to cook with a single oven and 60cm hob I have specially selected a double oven and 90cm gas hob. It should be a pleasure to cook in.
The island bench provides a great spot for breakfast or chatting with the cook. The lower units will be mainly draws for ease of use, and the overhead cupboards will be without handles for a sleek look.
A small desk area will give the laptop, mobile phone chargers, to-do and shopping lists a home. This area will double up for pouring drinks when we are entertaining, with the glasses being stored in the overhead cupboard.
A neutral pallet of colours with gloss finishes will hopefully create a smart look that won't date too quickly, and complement our flooring and furniture.
The kitchen cupboards, worksurface and splashback that we have chosen are made by Laminex.
The cupboards are CrystalGloss in Pumice...
The worksurface is DiamondGloss in Limestone...
I had expected to use the worksurface as the splashback but it is unfortunately not flame retardant. The solution is the aluminium based Metaline splashback in the brand new colour Regal Cream. I'll add a colour sample once it's available.
We will of course have downlights in the ceiling and under the overhead cupboards, but we may also have a white LED strip light under the island bench. Could look pretty cool in the evening.
The Electrolux E: Line Double Oven (EUEE63CS)...
The Omega 90cm Gas Cooktop (OG92XA)...
We will use an undermount rangehood that you cannot see when facing the cupboards. I think that it is a very neat alternative to visible retractable hoods. It may be the Omega 70cm Undermount Rangehood...
We will also buy a new semi-integrated or integrated dishwasher. The microwave space has been considered with the view to install a built-in version when our existing one breaks.
I have tried to find an inset sink that has the same simple lines as an undermount sink, which we can't have as our worksurface will not be waterproof when cut. I have gone for the Afa Exact 792 Inset Double Sink...
The Phoenix Cruise Range Deluxe Sink Mixer Tap will be joined by a Waterways Drinking Water Purifier and a built in Soap Dispenser.
Sunday 21 August 2011
The Look of the Home
Now comes the fun part - choosing the look and feel of the home.
As you have probably guessed we like the look of Balinese homes, the roof shapes, use of wood and stone, plus the tropical plants and water features to name a few things.
The outer walls of our home will be rendered and the doors, garage and windows at the front will be either made of wood, or have a wood-effect finish.
There will be multiple roof lines with dutch gables, and a raised porch roof with stone veneer columns. The alfresco will have the same stone veneer columns at the back of the house.
We like the idea of a warm light brown/beige render, with a dark grey or light brown roof and the remaining windows and doors to be white. The stone veneer will be a mixture of cream and brown tones.
The colours may be similar to this home...
and have a porch similar to this...
We are considering using these brown tiles instead of the grey...
That's most of the outside decided, although we still have to think about the colours of the eaves, fascias, gutters and downpipes.
Now for the inside :)
As you have probably guessed we like the look of Balinese homes, the roof shapes, use of wood and stone, plus the tropical plants and water features to name a few things.
The outer walls of our home will be rendered and the doors, garage and windows at the front will be either made of wood, or have a wood-effect finish.
There will be multiple roof lines with dutch gables, and a raised porch roof with stone veneer columns. The alfresco will have the same stone veneer columns at the back of the house.
We like the idea of a warm light brown/beige render, with a dark grey or light brown roof and the remaining windows and doors to be white. The stone veneer will be a mixture of cream and brown tones.
The colours may be similar to this home...
and have a porch similar to this...
We are considering using these brown tiles instead of the grey...
That's most of the outside decided, although we still have to think about the colours of the eaves, fascias, gutters and downpipes.
Now for the inside :)
The Plan
I have designed our home using the software Home Designer Suite 6.0.
The home is a single story dwelling split over 3 levels with 201 sq m of living, and a total of 273 sq m.
Although the land runs north/south the fall of the land is more north-west/south-east. So the house will be angled with the fall.
The main living areas have been positioned to make the most of the northerly sun and the lounge positioned on the eastern corner to make the most of the views to the east.
The master bedroom and the guest bedroom also enjoy the views. The window seat in the master bedroom will be a wonderful spot to sit first thing in the morning with a cup of tea.
The study will have views to the south and the home theatre is tucked in between the garage and laundry.
It has taken quite a few drafts to get the plan right, trying to make the most of the sunlight and the location. The alfresco was originally accessed from the dining room but didn't make the most of the views, so we moved it to the north/east corner.
The house will be positioned as far up the block as is necessary to enjoy the views to the east without them being blocked by the neighbours roof.
I'm sure that there will be plenty of tweaking of the plan but it is looking good for now.
Land, land, land
Well here it is, our 3,422sq m of land sloping upwards from the street with a north/south orientation.
It has wonderful views to the Mount Barker Summit
and across the farmland to the south-east
To say that we are pleased with it would be an understatement.
It has wonderful views to the Mount Barker Summit
and across the farmland to the south-east
To say that we are pleased with it would be an understatement.
Friday 19 August 2011
Where to Live?
We decided that we wanted to live in the countryside up in the hills with a bit of land around us, preferably on a block of 1,000 - 2,000 sq m. This area called the Adelaide Hills is a range running roughly north/south to the east of the city of Adelaide.
It's a beautiful area covered in conservation parks and native bushland dotted with quaint villages and vineyards. The only downside is that it's cooler up there and has more rain than on the plains, and temperatures can drop to freezing point in the Winter.
Finding just the right block of land became a long drawn out process of reviewing adverts on the web and then driving all over the countryside to view them.
As we didn't want to live on a new estate (done that before) finding odd blocks of land that people were selling off privately was difficult, and we weren't the only ones looking!
After viewing all the land within our budget that were either full of trees (too expensive to remove), surrounded by trees (damp and dark), backing onto railway lines (for freight trains), next to main roads, ex-quarries, too steep or too close to neighbours we had to rethink our requirements.
We decided that we had no choice but to look at the new estates further out in Littlehampton and Mount Barker. The block sizes on offer are on average between 500-800 sq m with only the odd block being between 1,000-1,600. In Europe the smaller land sizes would be fine but here in Australia detached homes can be built right up to the fence line, which leaves you feeling hemmed in and very close to your neighbours.
We looked at the larger blocks and they all had problems that meant that the builder couldn't make them smaller in order to sell them e.g trees in the middle of the block that had to stay, backing onto industrial estates with sound barriers in between or next to a main road. We just couldn't see ourselves living there.
The only option left to us was to see if there were any empty blocks being re-sold in the established estates in Mount Barker. One area in particular had what they call rural blocks of between 2,000 and 4,000 sq m.
We viewed 7 blocks, 2 backed on to the freeway, 1 was shaded by trees, and 2 had road noise reflected off a hill. That left 2 that we liked and they both had great views. The one that we liked the most we thought was too expensive, so we sent the details of the other to a builder for advice as to whether we could afford to build on it.
The builder said that because of the steepness of the block it would in fact be cheaper to build on the block that we thought too expensive. So here you can see our dilemma, buy the expensive land with the great views, in a great location or start looking again.
After 48 hours of further research we decided to buy the land.
It's a beautiful area covered in conservation parks and native bushland dotted with quaint villages and vineyards. The only downside is that it's cooler up there and has more rain than on the plains, and temperatures can drop to freezing point in the Winter.
Finding just the right block of land became a long drawn out process of reviewing adverts on the web and then driving all over the countryside to view them.
As we didn't want to live on a new estate (done that before) finding odd blocks of land that people were selling off privately was difficult, and we weren't the only ones looking!
After viewing all the land within our budget that were either full of trees (too expensive to remove), surrounded by trees (damp and dark), backing onto railway lines (for freight trains), next to main roads, ex-quarries, too steep or too close to neighbours we had to rethink our requirements.
We decided that we had no choice but to look at the new estates further out in Littlehampton and Mount Barker. The block sizes on offer are on average between 500-800 sq m with only the odd block being between 1,000-1,600. In Europe the smaller land sizes would be fine but here in Australia detached homes can be built right up to the fence line, which leaves you feeling hemmed in and very close to your neighbours.
We looked at the larger blocks and they all had problems that meant that the builder couldn't make them smaller in order to sell them e.g trees in the middle of the block that had to stay, backing onto industrial estates with sound barriers in between or next to a main road. We just couldn't see ourselves living there.
The only option left to us was to see if there were any empty blocks being re-sold in the established estates in Mount Barker. One area in particular had what they call rural blocks of between 2,000 and 4,000 sq m.
We viewed 7 blocks, 2 backed on to the freeway, 1 was shaded by trees, and 2 had road noise reflected off a hill. That left 2 that we liked and they both had great views. The one that we liked the most we thought was too expensive, so we sent the details of the other to a builder for advice as to whether we could afford to build on it.
The builder said that because of the steepness of the block it would in fact be cheaper to build on the block that we thought too expensive. So here you can see our dilemma, buy the expensive land with the great views, in a great location or start looking again.
After 48 hours of further research we decided to buy the land.
Wednesday 17 August 2011
What We Want in a Home
We have thought long and hard about the type of home that we would like and how it would fit our lifestyle. Knowing that we want a block of land with views and a sense of space and privacy we know that our budget will not stretch to the typical Aussie home with a pool. We have decided to compromise the home for the land. Despite that the size of house will still be large by European standards.
The rooms that we want the home to have are:
- North facing lounge, dining room & kitchen (with pantry),
- Master bedroom with ensuite,
- Guest bedroom and third bedroom to be used as a study,
- Main bathroom with separate toilet,
- Laundry close to kitchen,
- Home theatre,
- Double garage with internal door,
- Covered alfresco with access from lounge or dining room.
Additionally we would like to have:
- Double glazing (not standard in Australia)
- Hydronic heating using radiators (also not standard in Australia),
- Real open log fire in lounge,
- Refrigerated ducted air-conditioning (it is so necessary),
- Gas boosted solar hot water system (a standard here with all the sun),
- Rain-water tank for watering garden (there is always a water shortage and water usage restrictions),
- Remote controlled garage door (not a luxury with tropical downpours and 40+ degree heat),
- 2.7m high ceilings,
- Tiled roof (metal roofs are the standard in Australia),
- Quality insulation in roof, and internal & external walls (Australian standards are pretty low compared to Europe).
The Dream
I have considered many house plans over the years including The Pagoda 35 by Carlisle Homes (Apr 2007), The Inspiration 34 by Porter Davis Homes (Nov 2006), The Laguna 307 by G.J. Gardner Homes (Apr 2006), The Waterford by Prentice Homes (May 2005), and the Broadview 26 by Metricon (Feb 2005).
Puri Villa
I have created a name for our home based on our love of the island of Bali in Indonesia. We holiday there as often as we can, and try to bring that "other world" holiday feel to our home. Puri we have been told in Bali means palace, although the Indonesian translation says castle. The word Puri has been used in Bali to name many hotels. To us it is our palace – although in England the saying is "an Englishman’s home is his castle". So either translation works for us.
I plan to have a stone or wooden house name plaque made in Bali.
Photo: Puri Santrian Hotel, Bali
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