ERA DEFYING

An interwar bungalow moves boldly into the 21st century while also celebrating its fabulous past.

- CHRIS PEARSON

Forget labels. It's impossible to pigeonhole this interwar bungalow in Melbourne's inner southeast. Therein lay its magic for interior designer and history buff Paul Hecker of Hecker Guthrie. It's a little bit Art Deco, Arts and Crafts, Californian bungalow and even NeoGothic in its sublime detailing, which were all there from day one. "It was a bizarre collation, a mash-up, but I found it totally charming," he says. All these wayward strands shared immaculate craftsmanship and quality materials, both amazing for a house that would not have been considered upmarket in its day.

Little wonder Paul was keen to retain its fabulous quirks and eccentricities when the owners, with four children, asked him to renovate it in 2019. "I wanted to respect and lean into what was there," he says. Having bought the house earlier that year, the couple were similarly mesmerised by its features, including stainedglass windows and carved timbers, all faithfully preserved. But, less appealingly, the clumsy layout was also a relic of an earlier time.

"We were attracted to the elegant Art Deco facade, the detailed cornices and the high coffered ceilings," says the owner. "But there were a lot of small rooms, and the spaces didn't work for how we lived." At some point, an extension had been added onto the back, with a kitchen and family room, though strangely they were separate with no open plan. A formal living area and dining room, both little used, monopolised the front. In short, the house failed to function for a family in the 21st century.