Bay Of Plenty

Decked out with year-round comfort in mind, this Sydney home holds all the cards in summer.

- Rosa Senese

For a well-travelled couple keen on architecture and ready to create their forever home, a clifftop site for sale on Sydney’s lower north shore presented all the answers. Utterly seduced by its harbour views, the couple – who both have backgrounds in technology – snapped up the property in 2013 and set about planning something special.

The result, by Sydney-based architectural firm Walter Barda Design, is a beautifully considered, smartly appointed home completed in 2017. Under a gently curving roof and sitting lightly on its rocky base, the house is built over four levels in steel and off-form concrete, with large expanses of floor-to-ceiling glass.

“It’s designed as a series of excavated terraces stepping down the slope,” explains director Walter Barda. The terraces and courtyards flow organically into the interiors and natural outcrops of sandstone have been woven skilfully into the structure, ensuring the home rests comfortably in its setting, despite the extensive floor plan.