Blairgowrie

Open, layered, and deeply connected to its surroundings, the home balances restraint with warmth, allowing light, landscape, and materiality to shape the experience of each space.

Set across a steep, sandy site opposite the beach, the home steps naturally with the land, using elevation to frame expansive views across the bay. Sandstone cladding, timber detailing, and a soft neutral palette ground the design within its coastal setting, while carefully resolved indoor-outdoor connections create a home that feels both sheltered and open to the landscape around it.

The clients were entering a new stage of life, wanting a home that reflected the relaxed lifestyle they loved about living on the Mornington Peninsula. They envisioned a home that felt welcoming and deeply connected to the outdoors, while still supporting everyday living and entertaining with ease.

Entertaining family and friends was central to the brief, alongside creating spaces that felt comfortable, open, and effortless to live in day to day. Natural stone became an important part of that vision, with the clients drawn to the texture, permanence, and warmth it would bring to the home. The design needed to feel grounded within the landscape while still capturing the beauty of the bay beyond.

The steep terrain, sandy ground conditions, and narrow access road presented significant design and construction complexities from the outset. Rather than resisting the conditions of the site, the home was carefully designed to step with the natural slope of the land, reducing visual bulk while allowing each level to engage directly with light, landscape, and view.

The site’s elevation became one of the project’s defining opportunities. As the home ascends through multiple levels, spaces gradually open toward the bay, creating a layered sense of arrival and release. From the street, the home welcomes visitors through a sandstone-clad entry sequence and floating concrete stairs that guide movement upward, revealing glimpses of water and landscape along the journey.

The design was driven by a desire to create a home that felt relaxed, coastal, and intrinsically connected to its setting. Materiality played a central role in achieving this, with sandstone cladding, natural timber, and a restrained palette bringing softness and permanence to the built form. Clean lines and carefully framed openings allow the home to feel refined without losing the relaxed character of its coastal context.

Connection between inside and out shaped the planning throughout. Living spaces open directly to the alfresco and spa pool, encouraging year-round outdoor living and entertaining, while expansive glazing draws natural light deep into the home. In the main living area, a cornerless window frames uninterrupted views across the bay, reinforcing the sense that the landscape itself forms part of the interior experience.

For the clients, confidence in the process came from feeling understood and supported from the earliest stages of the journey. They deeply valued the collaborative relationship with the Latitude 37 team, particularly the way their vision was listened to, refined, and carried consistently through design, interiors, documentation, and delivery.

Despite building during a period of broader uncertainty, the structured guidance and clear communication provided reassurance throughout the project. Trust developed naturally through the team’s ability to balance creativity with clarity, allowing the clients to remain connected to the process without feeling burdened by complexity. The result is a home that feels deeply personal, thoughtfully resolved, and entirely aligned with the life they imagined for this next chapter.