Architectural Features of Award-Winning Sydney Home

When they walked into their home for the first time, Roberta Easton turned to her husband and said, “Patrick, this is it.”

During her house hunt, Roberta, an interior designer, had a request. “I kept saying to the real estate agents, I have to have a wow factor… You have to show me something that is amazing … not cookie cutter,” she said.

In 2016, the couple bought Reeves House, designed by architects Peter Stutchbury and Sue Harper. It was commended for the Robin Boyd Award for Residential Architecture – the Australian Institute of Architects’ top award for new homes – in 2000.

The tri-level property is nestled in the treetops of Clareville on Sydney’s northern beaches, with views to Pittwater, and features open spaces that maximise sun but offer shelter from the weather.

After 10 years living at 91 Hudson Parade, Roberta and Patrick, both aged 65, have decided to sell the home and make a tree change.

The property is listed for sale with a $6 million price guide by private treaty.

Before moving to the northern beaches, the couple were in the inner west for almost a decade and had renovated a Victorian terrace house.

Patrick, a business consultant, said the difference between their current home and their prior inner west terrace was that they had felt “all enclosed.”

Roberta explained, “You walk through the front door, past the great rooms, staircase going up, and it’s not till you actually… get to the back of the house where it opens up.”

“We always thought, gee, we would love to see more of the outdoors,” Patrick said.

As soon as they walked into the Clareville property the empty nesters could see trees everywhere they looked.

“Because I’m so interested in design and interiors … The house just stood out,” Roberta said.

She said there are “so many magnificent features, and everywhere you look in the house, it’s just another interesting moment.”

They purchased the house for $2,925,000 and lived there for a while to see if they needed any changes.

They added a swimming pool five years ago. “The pool is one spectacular feature. There’s no fence around the pool,” Roberta said. It was also designed by Peter Stutchbury, with edges that can’t be walked on.

Updates have been minimal. Roberta added green to the colour palette to reflect more of the nature outside on the inside.

They refurbished the bathroom tiles and the splashback in the kitchen. The garden matured with the house.

Day to day, they notice the impact of the architectural design detail.

Patrick appreciates the house’s thoughtful orientation. “It really catches the northern sun as well as handles the western sun as well,” he said.

“It’s really nestled into a little nook too, so it’s very well protected from the weather … So you might have a howling southwesterly, but you [can] still sit outside because there’ll be a deck that you can sit on that’s sheltered from that.”

The entire layout is open plan yet feels private at the same time. And while the design is primarily doorless, other than two downstairs doors, the couple didn’t mind the lack of door to their en suite. It was just the two of them.

Because of the flow of the home, they haven’t felt the need to overfill the space with furniture. Each piece, Roberta said, is “limited but very considered”.

“You don’t need a lot of decor in a house like Peter Stutchbury’s house because the house is the decor, the angles, the materials,” she said.

“We sit and watch the clouds roll by,” she added. They also watch the sunsets and how the light changes through the day.

A highlight of the past decade has been having Pittwater on their doorstep. They moor their Beneteau across the road.

“It’s a sailors’ playground,” Roberta said, adding that Patrick is a very “keen, great sailor.”

Within five minutes, they can be across the water, having lunch at Morning Bay, or sleep a few nights on the Hawkesbury River or in four hours be in Sydney Harbour.

“It’s been a privilege and an absolute pleasure,” she said.

The couple will miss Clareville but are looking forward to a different experience in the Hunter Valley.

“It’s a time in our life where we need to stretch out and have another adventure,” Roberta said.

Roberta is going to have a pottery studio, and Patrick will continue to sail from Sydney. And their adult children look forward to visiting them in the next spot.

Selling agent Marcus Lloyd-Jones from Modern House says the home stands out due to its architecture and location.

“There is a certain part of the market that truly understands great design, fantastic engineering and building,” he said.

“A property of this quality is rare. It really is.”

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