THE CLAIRMONT

Welcome to a new journey in The Clairmont- a building that has developed from a mere petrol station, into a parking station, to a hotel, and finally converted to residential apartments. Unlike my previous projects which were oozing with history and outrageous personality, the Clairmont project has begun in a bland, dysfunctional manner. The view however- anything but bland!

Favourite vintage feature: A retro hotel hairdryer with its cord already cut.

DEMOLITION

Safety first.. always remember your PPE

AESTHETICS

This building was built during the Brutalist period, and I wanted to reference that by creating a cement bathroom and bench top. I also wanted to bring an element of organic minimalism into the apartment to help connect it more to nature and the incredible view. The process of Tadelakt provided this aesthetic fusion of Organic Brutalism. Of course upon researching into traditional Tadelakt process, where lime and sand are used as a render and sealed with an organic soap, I felt that the durability was a bit low for my end purposes. After extensive experimentation and research, I created my own compound which uses the same processes and application techniques as both Tadelakt and cement render; giving the best properties from both techniques. The dappled colouration and smoothness of Tadelakt along with the durability of a cement render.

HOME SWEET HOME?

As always, living on the job site brings its own challenges. Investing in a great vacuum was a game changer. Perhaps excessive to have a H class vacuum, but when you’re living in the mess it makes the absolute difference between surfaces feeling clean vs even the air feeling clean. Storage and functionality is also a tricky one- the play between keeping things dust free and also wanting to have a “space” to relax in. This time around my first thing to complete was the wardrobe. This was actually a fantastic idea and made the entire process so much more enjoyable.

FLOORING

Birch Plywood flooring also lends itself to the Organic Brutalism aesthetic- the material in itself a blend of nature and more modern technology. The Birch composition makes this an incredibly durable material and suitable for the wear and tear of flooring. As both an aesthetic and functional design feature, this plywood has also been wrapped up the walls providing a seamless flow from the floor up, expanding the space. It also provides additional soundproofing from neighbouring apartments. An edge trim was also added later to create framing of the individual panels and because, well, it brought me joy.

COLOURS

As per my reflections on the Northcity lights apartment, Project Yellow, I decided white was not going to happen here. This was a bright apartment that needed calmness added- not glare. Enter the concept of Colour Drenching.

Colour Drenching is where the entire space is completely emerged in one tone or colour. Given the view was my focal point here, colour drenching seemed an appropriate way to tone down the internals to allow the eye to travel to the view without completing focal points.

While overall I enjoy the outcome of this concept, I also couldn’t entirely pull myself away from feature colour strips and highlights. A white stepped cornice was added to lift the ceiling height visually again, along with a strip of my favourite Liquorice Green paint.

KITCHEN

The property shape was very square, which lead to an unnecessary amount of width in the kitchen/ lounge area. Given I wanted a washer dryer in the kitchen bench top- this became a point for the design which incorporated the 750mm depth requirement for the washing machine, while also not ending up with excessive bench depth. Drawers in the kitchen were custom made to be extra deep, and a sliding pantry behind the kitchen bench was created. Having an induction cooktop meant that a birch splashback/sliding door set up was achievable. The kerf bent shelving sits on top of the sliding pantry for strength. Lastly, the door front for the range hood was made using offcuts laminated together. Overall, this project held very little waste.

BATHROOM

The overall location of services and condition of the existing tiling meant that running a topcoat of my special micro cement mix over the top was quick, easy, and durable. Additional waterproofing was put underneath, although not required, and oxides added to get a rich green hue for the shower recess. Bronze mirrors are also my new favourite thing, and were featured in the shower cavity.