HOUSE of TUDOR

Brimming with jewel tones, this refreshed Melbourne home is an unfolding wonderland of enduring style, light and restraint.

- STORY Jackie Brygel

If move-in day following an extensive renovation induces excitement and perhaps a little trepidation, emotions can be excused for running higher still when it happens to take place on December 24. the owner-builder of this reborn 1937 English-Tudor house in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. "I didn't even know how to use the new oven, so we made the call at the last minute not to have Christmas lunch at our place the next day," adds his wife. "We promised to host the following Christmas."

When the couple, who share the home with their son and daughter, bought the house on its 852 square-metre block in March 2020, it was also a significant day. But not for the best of reasons. "We signed the papers on the morning Melbourne was locked down for the first time at the beginning of Covid," says the owner.

With its mishmash of add-ons and decor styles from decades past, the house was calling for a radical structural and cosmetic reset. But the couple was undaunted, their hearts captured by the historical home's impeccable street presence as well as the leafy neighbourhood. "I've wanted to be in this part of Melbourne for most of my life," he adds.

After living in the home as it was for a couple of years, the couple commissioned Silvia Roldan of interior design practice Studio Esar to weave her skills on a full-scale revival and extension. Brought to considered life over two years, the project proved a creative meeting of minds.