| AN ENTERTAINERS DELIGHT
When a real-estate agent first walked Aldo and Janelle Mostacci through the Oatley property in 2003, their initial response to the old, run-down house was an all-too-familiar one. “It was an ugly box,” laughs Aldo, who recalls disliking it straight away. But it met their budget, was in a great location and suited their lifestyle perfectly. “Once we saw the view and the north facing backyard we felt the house had potential,” Aldo explains. They considered renovating, but in the end decided to knock down the existing house and rebuild. This was the beginning of a new journey for the family of four who welcomed plans of constructing a two-storey abode that was comfortable, practical and an entertainer’s delight. A HOLIDAY FEEL The brief for the architect and Sydney-based interior designer Jodie Carter, was to create a home and garden that was not only well set up for entertaining, but was also low maintenance, family friendly and had a relaxing atmosphere. “We wanted our house to feel like we were on holidays every day,” Aldo relates, “just like living in a resort.” Finding the right colour scheme for the interior was instrumental in determining the look and feel of it. Jodie selected a warm, neutral palette that was mostly made up of chocolate browns with some light blue and green shades to balance the mood. As Aldo insisted on keeping the rustic-looking furniture from their old house – most of which was custom made – Jodie had it stained in a dark colour to match the modern style of the new one. “We like the furniture more now than when we had it made originally,” he beams, “and it was a fraction of the price of buying new pieces to suit.”
The house began to take shape once the barbecue was chosen and the outdoor entertaining area was complete. Bi-fold doors separate the open-plan living space from the outdoors, allowing it to become one broad expanse – doubling the size of this already large room. “It’s a contemporary family home that embraces indoor/outdoor living and entertaining,” Jodie explains. “You feel welcome and comfortable as soon as you come in.” The kitchen dominates one end of the vast open-plan living area, and it was custom designed to cater for their needs. Jodie had 950mm high benchtops installed for Aldo, who is quite tall, and storage drawers throughout for Janelle. “We spent a lot of time designing this house to suit our lives,” affirms Aldo.
A MULTIFUNCTIONAL HOME There are many thoughtful features in this home. Jodie consulted Aldo and Janelle to find out how they intended to use each room in their house, right down to how they wanted to stow their clothes in the built-in wardrobes. She also designed a cupboard next to the doorway in the garage to store Aldo’s cycling gear. “Now I can take my gear off and put it away as soon as I walk into the house so there not being left on the kitchen table and bench,” Aldo comments. Incorporating ample storage space was the key to making this a multifunctional home. “The most important thing was for the décor to be practical,” he remarks, “and to suit our lifestyle.” With demanding careers, Aldo and Janelle wanted to make their home a sanctuary for themselves and their two daughters – five year old Taylor and two year old Leah – so creating a house and garden that required very little maintenance was a big part of the design brief. “When we’re home we want to spend time with the girls, not look after the house,” Aldo explains.
This four bedroom house has far surpassed the Mostacci family’s expectations – even their friends think it’s great, referring to it fondly as ‘Café Mostacci’. “We all love it,” Aldo beams, “We consider ourselves very lucky to live in this home and in the area.” Download the complete Magazine article Story by Belinda Crestani |
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Modern Home Vol.3 No. 10
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This resort style home overlooking the picturesque Georges River in Sydney was designed to draw in the abundance of natural light and capture the surrounding views from almost every angle.
Finding ways to capture and utilise the natural light streaming in from the north also helped steer the look and feel of the house, re-creating a warm holiday environment they could enjoy every day. Above the foyer, the high windows lap up the steady flow of sunlight during the winter, while the roofline cleverly blocks the strong rays in summer.
Jodie was cautious not to produce an overall theme in the house. She was adamant there should be a flow –on effect between rooms, with each one designed to complement the next. “Jodie picked one or two rooms at a time for us to work through,” Aldo says. “She held our hand all the way through the design process.” She even went so far as to organise a shopping day for them, arranging appointments with various stores and suppliers who were more than happy for them to browse through their collections. “This made the day very productive – and expensive,” Aldo Jokes.
What was evident to Jodie and the architect when looking at the property for the first time was its high position and unobstructed views of Georges River right across to Como on the other side. To take advantage of this, the upstairs lounge room was raised slightly, enhancing the natural light and views of the water.