Hyland Street by Bergman & Co.
Hyland Street by Bergman & Co. leans into Palm Springs mid-century design influences for the striking home tucked within an eclectic street in South Yarra, Melbourne.
Words: Hande Renshaw I Photography: Lillie ThompsonI I Interior Design & Styling: Bergman & Co. I Build: Dimpat I Landscape Design: SCR Landscapes
‘It was the perfect colour and material to celebrate their love of pink, their love of design and their femininity, without the house looking like a flamingo!’ says Wendy Bergman of the kitchen island.
The generous kitchen island matches the accompanying custom joinery in the kitchen, which sits parallel to the pool and staircase.
The incredible 5.6 metre kitchen island benchtop is Rosa Calmante Quartzite, which was sourced from CDK Stone.
“Without a doubt, my favourite design element is the kitchen island bench—the island’s presence is unavoidable, and its beauty compels you to want to touch and connect with this incredible natural material.”
External open brickwork allows for light and air to enter and flow through the spaces.
‘The hit-and-miss style brickwork gives ‘peek-a-boo’ privacy for the home, evoking a sense of intrigue and allowing all important sunlight to enter,’ says Wendy Bergman.
The owner’s of Highland Street, which is tucked within an eclectic street in South Yarra, in Melbourne, had a strong love for Palm Springs and the mid-century movement. The young couple called on Wendy Bergman from Bergman & Co. to bring their design to life, a space that would also accommodate their dedication and love for heath and wellbeing.
‘Their aim was to have a home that enhanced the client’s passion for wellbeing, was well suited for entertaining, but foremost, a space to feel comfortable and relaxed so they could recharge from their very active lifestyles,’ shares Wendy.
The striking home features three bedrooms and two bathrooms, including a light-filled ensuite, complete with a large skylight over the twin shower, and a powder room.
From the streetscape, the home is incredibly striking – the exterior features hit-and-miss brickwork, which not only adds a layer of interest to the external design but also allows for extra sunlight and air to flow into the internal spaces.
‘The hit-and-miss style was used to fulfil the client’s vision for a spectacular street presence. The brickwork gives ‘peek-a-boo’ privacy, evoking a sense of intrigue and allows all important sunlight to enter. They are also an aesthetic wink to the wonderful use of brickwork and breeze blocks commonly used in mid-century Palm Springs architecture,’ Wendy says.
The house itself needed to be designed to fit on a small plot, a challenge when designing a home that needed to embrace Palm Springs mid-century style homes, which are commonly larger scale on bigger blocks of land – a challenge which called for design ingenuity from Bergman & Co.
‘The considerably small house plot and limiting council regulations led the team to creatively design features that allowed light to flood the interior spaces,’ says Wendy. Design features to achieve a larger sense of space included exposed concrete and brickwork, which was used extensively in the build, but required softening. ‘To achieve this, we introduced curves to the exterior walls and warm timber panelling to the interior spaces, creating a sense of calm and refinement,’ she adds. In the living space, multiple large sliding doors open the room to the outside pool area and a small garden, allowing air flow and supporting the client’s passion for entertaining.
A standout feature in the home is the 5.6 metre kitchen island, which was a result from the initial briefing for the design of the home, when the client’s expressed a passion for the colour pink. ‘Without a doubt, my favourite design element is the kitchen island bench—the island's presence is unavoidable, and its beauty compels you to want to touch and connect with this incredible natural material – it was the perfect colour and material to celebrate their love of pink, their love of design and their femininity, without the house looking like a flamingo!’
A pool stretches the length of the narrow site.
Gym equipment is completely concealed when not in use.
Exterior joinery allows for gym equipment to be concealed when not in use.
“Their aim was to have a home that enhanced the client’s passion for health and wellbeing, was well suited for entertaining, but foremost, a space to feel comfortable and relaxed so they could recharge from their very active lifestyles.”
The home office space at the front of the home.
A view onto the pool, which stretches the length of the narrow site.
The roof terrace features banquette seating and skyline city views.
‘Their aim was to have a home that enhanced the client’s passion for health and wellbeing,’ says Wendy Bergman, pictured.
The freestanding bathtub, concealed behind the hit-and-miss arrangement of brickwork.
The light-filled ensuite features a large skylight over the twin shower.
