Behind its acquainted Victorian faсade, this Melbourne house reveals an surprising sense of lightness and invention. Reimagined by WALA – Weian Lim Architects, the home has been cleverly turned the other way up, reworking a compact inner-city website right into a vibrant, modern retreat that feels way more beneficiant than its footprint suggests. The unique street-facing construction has been fastidiously restored, anchoring the undertaking in its heritage context. Past it, nevertheless, the format challenges conference. Slightly than extending outward, the architects constructed upward, relocating the principle residing areas to the higher stage and reserving the bottom flooring for bedrooms, loos, and a research – areas that profit naturally from privateness and enclosure.











Regardless of the location’s modest measurement, the inside feels open and calm. Strategic window placement attracts daylight deep into the plan, whereas refined design strikes – similar to a frameless glass bathe – enable mild to move freely between rooms. One bed room opens onto a sheltered timber deck wrapped in greenery, providing a quiet second of connection to nature inside the dense city setting.




Upstairs, the house opens absolutely. The residing, eating, and kitchen areas unfold as a single, ethereal house, softened by a full-height curtain that filters mild and maintains privateness alongside the road edge. A small balcony extends the residing space outward, framing distant metropolis views and including a welcome sense of escape.








By rethinking how house is organised and embracing vertical residing, WALA Architects have created a house that feels fashionable, versatile, and deeply livable – whereas remaining respectful of its Victorian origins. The undertaking is captured superbly by way of the lens of Tatjana Plitt, highlighting a home that proves considerate design can unlock exceptional potential in even the smallest of web sites.


Supply: Inside Zine