When your builder suggests creating a home inspired by the iconic 1950s Rose Seidler House in Sydney, you know you’re on to something special. Today’s real home, The Glasshaus, comes to us from Coolbinia in Perth’s Western Australia and is an absolute showstopper.
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When we first laid eyes upon Mark and Alissa’s jawdropping home we just knew we had to take a closer look!
“We chose Coolbinia in Perth, because it’s only 5 kilometres from the CBD yet still super quiet,” Alissa explains.
“The blocks can’t be subdivided so everyone still has big backyards which was a huge plus for us with our 2 young boys — Myles (9) and Alex (4).
“We spent a number of years trying to buy an established property in the area but eventually realised that if we wanted everything on our house wish list, we were better off building.”
The design concept, The Glasshaus, was presented to them by their designer builder and everything just took off from there.
“We spent 6 months designing and planning. Our builders, Residential Attitudes, showed us the design and we immediately fell in love with it and developed our own custom design from there.”
“Our brief was pretty simple, we wanted something with a modernist feel that let in lots of light and we weren’t afraid of taking risks and doing something unconventional.
“We had a very clear idea of what we wanted in terms of layout and size for our dream home. We also wanted to pay respect to the original mid-century houses of Coolbinia and take advantage of the beautiful park outlook.”
Taking 12 months to build, Alissa and Mark’s home has an enviable ‘adults only penthouse’.
“Most of the house is situated on the ground level, leaving the upstairs ‘penthouse’ for our master bedroom, ensuite and home office. This is a perfect little sanctuary away from the craziness of downstairs with our 2 boys,” laughs Alissa.
“Downstairs consists of the usual kitchen, dining, living, as well as 3 more bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a gym and rumpus room.”
It comes as no surprise that both Alissa and Mark’s favourite part of The Glasshaus is the upstairs retreat!
“I love the generosity of space in the master ensuite and I think all the finishing selections tie it together perfectly. I especially like that we decided to run the Uniquestone floor tiles up the walls too.
“It feels really luxurious and the big walk-in shower (with no glass to clean, which was at the top of my wish list!) is a real treat.
“For Mark, his favourite is the home office. He often works from home and has previously never had a purpose built study. His new office looks out over the backyard and pool and includes a balcony to look over the park across the street. It’s a relaxing space and one he actually enjoys working in.
“But as a family, we all love the alfresco and pool area. Our house is an L-shape configuration so our designers suggested putting the pool in the centre of the home and making it a real feature.
“It works so well as it brings both the inside and outdoor entertaining areas together plus I can see the kids in the pool from the kitchen island which is great.”
Another statement in this home is the beautiful open concrete staircase which can be seen from the moment you walk through the front door.
“Our designer had the great idea of using the open concrete soffit staircase — it’s definitely a statement piece,” says Alissa.
“The original plan was to hone and polish the concrete but when we saw the effect of the raw concrete after it had been poured, we decided to keep it that way. It was a nice little discovery during the build.”
As tempting as it can be to get straight into the build, Alissa says putting the time in during the planning phase was key to keeping their project on track.
“We were fortunate that everything went to plan over the course of the build. I think a lot of this can be put down to the fact that we spent a lot of time in the planning stage before the build commenced so we weren’t having to make decisions or change things on the run,” says Alissa.
“Building was so much fun and it’s very rewarding having a house that reflects us as a family. After the initial planning phase, it was exciting seeing The Glasshaus come to life.
“The longest part of the build seemed to be the flagstone crazy pave — it truly was a labour of love. It took our two dedicated stonemasons over 2 months to lay the paving! But the result is just incredible and really does make the house what it is.
I think we appreciate our home so much more having had so much involvement in creating it.
Huge thank you to Alissa and Mark for taking the time to show us around their incredible home. We just love showcasing real homes here at Style Curator so drop us an email or comment down below if you have one you’d like us to feature.
Builder and photography: Residential Attitudes
Landscape designer: Ascher Smith
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Wondering what colour and brand the kitchen cupboards are? The walnut timber is beautiful!
Hi Jac
It looks like Florentine Walnut by Polytec (https://www.polytec.com.au/colour/florentine-walnut/) but I suggest reaching out to the builder to confirm https://www.residentialattitudes.com.au Hope this helps!