DESIGN MORE WITH LESS

NEW BUILD

The owners of ‘The Bromley’ came to Dalecki Design with a simple desire to create a humble and light-filled family home to support their relaxed lifestyle. As gardening enthusiasts and lovers of mid-century Australian design, the clients were keen to create a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom home with a calm, minimalist atmosphere, fostering strong connections between indoor and outdoor space. 

Driven by the client’s brief and the site’s compact 320m2 footprint, the mantra ‘less is more’ guided the design of ‘The Bromley’ in every regard. From the street, the home’s elemental form combines render, shiplap cladding, and brickwork textures, unified in white paint and contrasted by timber battens and panelling. Upon entry, an external ‘hit-and-miss’ brick wall appears to sail into the interior, establishing a feeling of continuity between indoor and outdoor volumes. 

At the home’s centre, kitchen, living and dining spaces are brought together as an active family hub. The living room’s ceiling rises to draw warming northern light and cooling southern breezes into the home, while effectively crafting a sense of spaciousness and definition between zones. A sweeping bulkhead over the kitchen, layered with planting, mimics the sculpted form of the island bench below, and gently binds and softens the transition between spaces. Beyond, dedicated wings for the main bedroom and kids’ areas maintain a strong spatial logic that facilitates privacy between family members. 

Throughout, the thoughtful placement of openings frames views to the surrounding gardens, maintaining a connection to natural light, ventilation and landscape that elevates the experience of home. The interior’s crisp palette is interjected with a series of timber cabinetry accents that echo the architecture’s striking material contrasts. Minimalist fittings, warm floor tiling and a combination of rectilinear and organic forms reinterpret the restraint of mid-century design, presenting warm and enduring environments to support family life. 

Despite its modest scale and budget, ‘The Bromley’ achieves an impressive ten-star energy rating, exceeding council requirements and delivering a highly efficient and comfortable dwelling for the homeowners. By optimising every square metre to its full potential, prioritising high-quality materials and environmental performance, Dalecki Design has crafted a calm and effortlessly beautiful home that shows just how much can be done with far less.