James and Emily have lived in their 100-year-old red‑brick California bungalow in Victor Harbor for over eleven years. They share it with their three kids — Cohen, Asher and Hildy — and two cats, Buddy and Scarlett, who are feline foes.

After Hildy (number three) came along, the years of Emily pinning and collating inspiration for an extension proved incredibly useful because creating more living space, cleverly optimised, was crucial. Tapping into her background and special interest in Interiors, Emily designed much of the extension herself, leaving the technical modelling and drafting to Onyx Design and Draft. It was completed in early 2026 by Fleurieu-based company Salt Building Services.

Fortunately for us, she had a mid-century dream living in her mind. She even has an MCM/Palm Springs-inspired house tattooed on her forearm. The extension was designed with some mid-century ideals fused with 70s modernist influences. Emily had been admiring our kitchen and bathroom projects for their MCM designs and uniqueness for around five years, and we were her top pick of joinery company.

As always, our first step was to get to know the family and their lifestyle. This is a lively household in a busy season: soccer games, birthday parties, late dinners, and the kind of weeknight chaos that makes weekend pancakes feel like a national holiday.

James cooks rustic meals “made with love.” Emily jokes hers are “made under time pressure and from lack of planning,” but only if the music is playing — that’s non-negotiable. The boys talk, play, watch, and breathe soccer. Hildy crafts, tumbles, and beats everyone at board games. And when the house is quiet, Emily weaves colourful fibre art at the dining table her dad built 16 years ago, chasing the best light in the home.

It’s a family that pours love and colour into their home, even when life is chaotic, and they needed space that could hold it all. The complex brief was full of personality, technical demands and our beloved mid-century references.

• Remove the kitchen bulkhead and replace the window with a large three‑panel unit.
• Fuse mid‑century ideals with 70s modernism and contemporary Australiana.
• Work with red and white brick, burnished concrete, Walnut timber, and a tonal palette of blues, pinks and greens.
• Create warmth, texture, and playfulness without losing cohesion.

The existing kitchen was essentially a thoroughfare between the entry foyer and the main living zone. It was so pokey it catered for one cook only. Hosting in there was impossible. Having a big, social kitchen was high on the wish list, with the following inclusions:

• A chunky curved island in Laminex Spinifex (with room for three stools)
• Walnut veneer with a 15mm frame
• Perini Piscina Verde Intensia tiles
• Fibonacci “The Graduate” stone
• Pigeon pair fridge/freezer
• Commercial dishwasher
• Tupperware drawer with high sides (ending a decade of avalanches)
• Green handles below bench, timber handles above

The kitchen finishes were to continue into a pantry with:

• Open shelving and curved shelving
• Closed storage
• Underfloor heating

Then onto a laundry and two bathrooms. Brodware weathered brass for the sanitaryware was requested throughout.

Big thanks to Sam C, one of our detailers, for managing this project with the clients. He responded to each and every change with aplomb.

Anyone who’s renovated knows there can be highs and lows. To hear that the part of this equation involving us was “fun” brought warm fuzzies to our cold winter. It’s true that no idea or material choice is too crazy for us and that we’ll accommodate changes between design and materials. We want you to love where you live just as much as you do.

Case in point: this new kitchen is adored. The deep island bench, as well as the window seat that connects the kitchen to the backyard greenery beyond it, has been “game-changing” to how the family lives. There is plenty of space for cooking and hosting. Sitting in the back north-west corner of the home and new extension, it receives the most beautiful light throughout the day, even in the height of winter.

The “stunning” stone benchtops by Fibonacci are one of the family’s favourite features. For James, in particular, who studied rocks as part of his engineering degree. They are earthy and complement the walnut joinery and blue/green mosaic tiles (Perini) in a way that nods to MCM design but also feels contemporary Australian and subtly coastal inspired. The tile colour pops throughout the kitchen via the blue/green drawers and some of the open shelving.

Timber plays a starring role, with the walnut veneer used to bring depth, texture, and a grounded natural feel to the joinery. Handles are deliberately mixed: green handles below the bench and on drawers for a playful pop, while timber handles on tall doors provide cohesion with the walnut tones. All joinery meets the pantry height and has pelmet detail.

The curved walnut joinery wall — hiding the walk‑in pantry — became the project’s “oh yes” moment. It was a purely aesthetic choice (as the extension features a few vertical plane curves), but once installed with precision, it immediately added warmth, personality, and a gentle sculptural presence to the vast open living zone. The family chose a Robert Gordon oyster wall sconce to celebrate their love of pottery and ceramics. Several of the brand’s fittings are across their new spaces.

Curves are a recurring motif throughout the extension, softening transitions, adding sculptural interest, and reinforcing the relaxed, homely, playful character the family desired. Lighting and hardware choices continue the warm, crafted feel, including under-cabinet LED strip lighting with adjustable warmth and the requested Brodware weathered brass sanitaryware throughout.

And yes, we facilitated a fully integrated pigeon pair fridge and freezer, induction cooktop, integrated rangehood ducted through the rear, commercial dishwasher in the island, an offset single bowl undermount sink, large dual bucket bin system, and a concealed appliance nook (the Tupperware avalanche-preventer sits below).

We also created a variety of open storage space for trinket display. The fridge might even be safe from Emily’s extensive magnet collection. (She’s a homebody who loves to travel.)

Every request was ticked off the pantry list, including a top shelf for plants. How stunning are the curves?! And should you venture from kitchen and pantry spaces to bathroom or laundry, you’ll note the palette follows.

We’re told that when not showing off her new bunk bed and Spacecraft wardrobe, Hildy loves to roll her tumble mat out in the new living space. And if they’re not out playing soccer, the boys are likely to be watching it or discussing it nearby. Heart of the home achieved!

Have the cats reconciled their long-standing dislike of each other to hang out in the new space? We hope so.