Previous pages: The home’s tilt slab concrete
walls have a decorative board-formed finish. The
textured surface was created by concrete poured
and set in timber formwork, the latter stripped
away to reveal imprints of the original plankwork.
The sunken lounge is a feature of the open-plan
entertainer’s space and features an elongated
gas fireplace and wool carpet. A David Trubridge
pendant here – together with another matching
lamp over the dining table – provides a design
feature and local task lighting.
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“The wealth of natural light is provided
by the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living
area and also by a glassed hall linking the
bedrooms at rear to the living spaces.”
The designers’ choice of a commercial
tilt-slab concrete structure naturally gives
the home an industrial, strong aesthetic.
To add warmth and soften the look of the
solid concrete walls and floors, timber
batten ceilings were introduced through-
out. This widespread use of natural wood
also provides acoustical dampening to
offset the potentially echoey concrete slabs.
As well as sheer speed of installation,
and having no concrete wasted, the choice
of tilt-panel concrete slabs was also great
for the installation of cosy, in-slab heating.
And while tilt-panel slabs were perfect
for creating the soaring, minimalist living
spaces, they also made for an ideal build-
ing material for the front yard pool – even
if the terrain made things slightly tricky.
“Achieving the preformed concrete
pool entailed building a platform for the
crane,” says Ball. “Even the preplanning
here needed close, careful consideration.”