The coastal-cool home of TileCloud's co-founder, tucked away in a tight inner-city suburb

Hello natural light.

Jan 25, 2024 12:00am
Out with the "rabbit warren" feel of an existing heritage home in Sydney's Redfern and in with a newly completed warm coastal house that brings modern Australian vibes and exudes a relaxed ambiance.
TileCloud's co-founder and homeowner Drew Mansur enlisted a who's who in design to create a stunning new dwelling he calls Redfern House. Working closely with designer Kate Lawrence and architect Thodey Design, the small Redfern plot has been completely transformed and is now a light-filled sanctuary for the home owners and their three young children.
The project required a complete overhaul of the existing property, which lacked flow and cohesion. Its layout had a rabbit warren feel of long corridors and closed off rooms and it required a sophisticated rework of the floorplan.
Council restraints meant the traditional exterior features of the heritage home needed to be retained, but otherwise the home has gone through a complete transformation, and the interiors were ripped out and rebuilt.
"The heritage house was originally tired and dated so we knew it had to be a big transformation to create the desired finish," says Drew. "Lots of closed-off rooms and a long windowless corridor left the place feeling gloomy and closed in."
Now the transformation is complete it couldn't look further from being a tired, cramped home. "It is such a joy to be living in our finished home and to see our vision realized. We gained plenty of inspiration from a massive mood board of amazing projects from Kate Lawrence, Kyal and Kara, The Stables, Josh and Jenna and Thodey Design, just to name a few," says Drew. "We felt inspired by their beautifully finished interiors, and overall timeless, yet contemporary feel."
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The new home is a stunning three-bedroom abode with open plan living and flow. The cladding is Colorbond Steel in Dune. The pool is by Plungie Studio in grey reef.

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In the new home, there are two bedrooms and a bathroom on the upper level, while the downstairs comprises a primary bedroom with ensuite, a guest bathroom, powder room and laundry as well as an open plan living, kitchen, dining area that flows seamlessly through to an outdoor oasis, complete with swimming pool and a separate garage/studio for guests.

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Sleek lines and a neutral colour palette are some of the defining features of the home, which have been softened through warm neutral tones, textured finishes and curved interior elements.

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A major move for the interior floorplan was to move the original front entrance of the home to the side, which enabled a more cohesive flow, and maximised the communal spaces. The new entry way from the exterior now features a curved brick, which works to soften the cooler grey exterior tones.

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This beautiful curved entry is mirrored on the interior, and was achieved using Gyprock Flexible. "We used two layers of 6mm Gyprock Flexible to bend around the feature curved hallway walls in the main entry, master bed and upstairs circulation space," says Drew.

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Yabby Tapware in Antique Brass is used throughout the home. Benchtops are Cosentino Dekton Taga, used because of its beautiful appearance and ease of maintenance. The mirror is from Future Glass.

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A curved benchtop creates a sense of flow and cohesion in the open plan space and works alongside other common elements in the scheme such a rounded furnishing.

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Natural light was a key factor in creating the desired ambience at Redfern House. The home has been punctuated with skylights throughout.

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A huge window in the upstairs hallway and large sliding doors on the ground level work to capitalise on the light flow throughout the entire home.

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"The floating stairs are a real point of focus in the home and help to reinforce a modern and contemporary space," says Drew.

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Textured accents both inside the house and externally bring character to the palette and work to achieve the consistently warm and inviting aesthetic of the home.

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The master bedroom suite comprises a classic colour combination of oatmeal and royal blue, underlined through a mix of natural textures. Meanwhile the children's bedroom and baby's nursery each incorporate fun and whimsical designs choices, in keeping with the mood of the home.

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In the family bathroom upstairs TileCloud Sydney White Stone Look tiles were used on the floors and walls. Yabby tapware in Antique Brass was used throughout the home.

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The homeowners used a lightweight 10mm thick plasterboard called Gyprock Plus throughout the home. "We have three young kids under the age of six so it's safe to say the house is going to be stress-tested over the next few years in particular," says Drew. The material is more impact resistant than standard 13mm Gyprock, which Drew says means "we will be patching less knocks and dings in the high traffic areas."

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