Northcote House No.4 By Pipkorn Kilpatrick
Guided by an unusual site and considered materiality, Pipkorn Kilpatrick transform a Victorian cottage—reorienting it to the garden, while balancing warmth and restraint.
Words HANDE RENSHAW Photos MARTINA GEMMOLA Architecture, Interiors & Landscape Design PIPKORN KILPATRICK Build CJV BUILDING & RENOVATIONS
“Set within a once-underused wedge, Northcote House No. 4 now turns decisively north. Pipkorn Kilpatrick carry restraint through the plan, shaping an interior of visual harmony.”
In Northcote, a modest Edwardian frontage gives way to an unexpected unfolding. Northcote House No. 4 by Pipkorn Kilpatrick is defined not by what it presents to the street, but by what it conceals behind—a reorientation of life and light guided by the site’s unusual wedge that fans northward to the rear.
From the street, the home reads as a narrow, double-fronted Victorian cottage, its restored fretwork and timber windows nodding to the past. Step inside, though, and the sense of compression quickly releases. What was once a series of dim, disjointed rooms has been completely re-imagined into a sequence of calm, connected spaces shaped by light, material and movement.
The original structure offered little beyond charm. The timber windows had long been replaced with thin metal frames; ceilings were dropped, proportions lost. Pipkorn Kilpatrick retained the roofline and central hallway, then made a pivotal decision—to pull the new extension along the southern boundary, freeing the north for light, outlook and garden. Alcoves and highlight windows punctuate the length of the addition, drawing in glimpses of greenery and reframing the block’s once-awkward geometry into an asset.
Inside, the house pivots around a sweeping brick curve—a soft anchor that defines the extension’s boot-shaped plan. Exposed beams trace a line from kitchen to living room and master suite, giving rhythm and continuity. At the tip of the plan, the dining area opens westward, with views across a plunge pool to the northern garden beyond. A lowered ceiling subtly defines the dining zone, structural beams meeting neatly at its edge.
Materially, the palette leans warm and grounded. Blackbutt veneer and solid timber meet hand-painted joinery in soft greys and off-whites. Ceppo di Gres marble lifts the kitchen and bathrooms, pairing elegantly with blackbutt-framed island benches and recycled messmate floors. The front study shifts tone, wrapped in a gentle green-grey that deepens the palette without breaking its calm.
Moments of tactility and texture lend depth throughout: a built-in sofa, a brick hearth that doubles as seating, and a frameless highlight window offering glimpses of treetops and train lines beyond. Large sliders open both the living and dining zones to the garden, while deep eaves, an extension of the internal beams, filter light and shade with ease.
The result is a home of considered balance—an architectural rhythm that feels both deliberate and effortless. Northcote House No. 4 breathes new life into its Edwardian bones, proving that restraint, light, and material honesty can transform even the most modest beginnings into something enduring.
