While walking the dog near her eastern suburbs home in 2021, Sue walked past a property for sale and spotted a beautiful, old stone wall running along the front boundary.
She and her husband Graeme lived about a kilometer away and wanted to sell the 100-year-old Federation-style house they had lived in for three decades to build.
The wall caught Sue's attention, and another plus was the opportunity to live right next to Second Creek, which runs along the rear boundary.
The couple had always lived in older homes and this place was the perfect place to create a sanctuary just for them.
Following a friend's recommendation, Graeme and Sue hired Troppo Architects and worked with them to design a space that would take full advantage of the magnificent surrounding gum trees, including one that straddles the boundary between their property and the neighbor's land.
The regulated rubber tree restricted the floor space as about a quarter of the block could not be built on – not even building materials could be left too close to the trunk of the giant rubber tree.
Still, the tree is almost a design feature in its own right, providing a vibrant backdrop that can be enjoyed just outside the space
of windows.
The brief was to incorporate wood, glass and stone, which Troppo used in abundance to create a warm interior that expresses nature.
The use of Carey Gully stone is a nod to the historic wall that once formed part of Moorcroft House, a house built in 1854 and later extended.
When the house was demolished years later, the property was divided, but the listed wall remained.
“We couldn’t tear it down – and we didn’t want to anyway,” says Graeme.
The wall creates a small courtyard at the front of the house, with a vegetable patch that Sue tends, showy lavender planted against the stone, and plenty of bench space to sit in the morning sun that finds its way.
While the wall is a beloved and robust monument to the area's history, Graeme and Sue wanted to modernize it.
“We have always lived in old houses and our previous one was more than 100 years old and had lovely old furniture,” says Sue.
“We thought there's no point in repeating that; we want something different.”
The home exudes a subtle mid-century modern vibe, particularly in the tone of the blackbutt wood that dominates the living space and the hoop pine shelving that separates the seating area from the hallway while leaving it open.
“We saw some Frank Lloyd Wright houses in the US that we really liked, so there’s a bit of inspiration there,” says Graeme.
The house stands on a 660 square meter plot and the entire floor space has been used sensibly.
“We painted rooms we didn’t need,” says Sue.
“In our previous home we had a small room that we didn't know what to do with: a bedroom, a study, a dining room that we only used occasionally, a huge living room and a family room.
“For two of us, we don't really need all of these rooms. We eliminated all of these extra rooms in favor of one really large room.”
The current house has three bedrooms, two of which are used as offices but could easily be converted if their children visit from abroad or abroad.
Troppo Architects' lead architect, Tain Patterson, worked on the project and immediately said that their starting point were the two elements seen on the site – the wall and the rubber tree.
Tain says his challenge is to ensure that the house and the wall interact seamlessly.
“The owners still wanted the ability to see and be connected to the wall from the house,” says Tain.
“Even though it's a little chunky and isn't the best example of stone carving, it still has this interesting character and when the afternoon light hits it it looks really nice gold and is quite a magnificent detail.”
Then there was the question of the sequoia tree.
“You walk across the site, you see the rubber tree and you think: How are we going to deal with this?”
Tain's first attempt was to design a house that would retain natural light and ventilation despite the blockage caused by the tree.
“It was actually a pretty challenging construction site, and that’s what makes projects interesting for me as an architect.”
According to Tain, the key to the design was keeping the second floor on one side to create a light and airy atmosphere.
“The second floor is on the eastern border because the neighbors on that border also have three significant trees that would overshadow the house anyway,” he says.
“In this way, the northern lights were maximized in the living area on the ground floor.
“The thing we wanted to avoid in a house so close to a tree was only seeing the trunk – you want to look up and admire this beautiful river red eucalyptus that's in front of you and also enjoy the canopy.”
The glass surface allows the green to shine and the hot air can be easily removed through the opening slats.
According to Tain, the idea was to keep the roof low over the second-floor bedroom to allow morning sun to stream into the ground-floor living space.
“But you don’t want to look at a bright, shiny metal roof from above, so we came up with the idea of a roof garden.”
Since the top floor does not rest perfectly on the ground and leaves an exposed edge of the roof, it was peppered with hardy plants.
From the upstairs bedroom/office there is a seamless transition from the rooftop greenery to the stream area and the roof planting was chosen for this exact purpose.
“The garden brings the greenery to the forefront – it feels like an extension of the reserve.”
Tain says that many roof gardens have deeper soil and that in order to support the weight, they require more structural members to support the weight.
However, this roof features a thin bed of soil and plants that do not require much water and care.
Tain says that nine times out of 10, when plans are first presented to a client, many aspects are not completed due to budget, but this project was different.
“To Graeme and Sue’s credit, their priority was to have something that was well made and a joy to live in and look at.”
The design won Troppo the 2025 South Australian Architecture Award for Residential Architecture – Houses (New).
Sue says she and Graeme initially aimed to keep the house very minimalistic – which they achieved through the neutral color palette – but little additions kept creeping in.
Both a butler's pantry and an outdoor kitchen were added to the plans and the result is a perfect home for guests.
The terrace extends on two sides of the house and when the couple have guests over, all the windows can be opened to create space for everyone inside and out.
The house is future-proof for Sue and Graeme; They had an elevator installed and the ground floor was designed to be solely residential, with a master bedroom on the main floor – another reason to keep the second floor footprint compact.
When it came to decorating, the pair had planned to hang a few pieces, but ultimately decided not to do anything that would detract from the character of the stone walls.
Graeme and Sue lived just a walk away during construction and walked there daily with their dog to meet builder Fergus Milne of Milne Projects – Tain says he is one of the best builders he has ever worked with – and he was happy to keep them updated on the events of the day.
The team was rounded off by WAX Design, who created something very special with the landscaping.
WAX won the 2024 Master Landscapers South Australia Residential Landscape Design Award for the four-tiered terrace design, which includes lush lawns and an abundance of locals.
The garden features a variety of edibles including limes, kumquats, lemons and an herb garden.
Graeme and Sue say the architect, builder and landscaper worked together to bring the project to fruition.
“Everyone worked closely together – it was real teamwork,” says Graeme.
“Our main focus was the house. I thought landscaping was just digging a few holes and planting plants in them, so I figured we'd give up on landscaping if everything got too expensive.
“I was completely ignorant; I didn't realize how big the job was. There was a lot of work with steel and concrete.
“The landscape gardeners (Adelaide Landscape Construct) worked really hard, even over the Christmas holidays.”
ALC also won an award at the Master Landscapers South Australia Residential Landscape Awards 2024 for their construction work.
The result of their work together is something that Graeme and Sue enjoy every day – their peaceful place between the trees.
“It’s our little oasis,” says Sue. “We don’t really see anyone except a few people walking their dogs along the creek on the other side.”
This article first appeared in the October 2025 issue of SALIFE magazine.