The Blending of New with Old

An enterprising addition fuses modern-day living with the timeless style of this nostalgic old-time art deco family home in one of the favourite parts of Newcastle.

The charm of yesteryear is one of the major attractions of this inner-Newcastle home, especially as it has been owned by three generations of a family for more than sixty years.

There is no doubt that many people have had long-time regrets that at the time such a home was offering they didn’t have the finances or an opportunity to purchase a long-held family-owned home that echoed so many nostalgic memories.

For Brooke Brugnoni, the opportunity to acquire her grandmother’s brick home at Cooks Hill, a place where her father grew up and where she spent so much of her childhood visiting “Nan”, was not to be missed.

The Cooks Hill property is in a highly sought neighbourhood of homes of similar design fronting the beautiful green parkland space of Centennial Park. The house is a cavity brick building with terracotta tiled roof, and distinctive timber detailing to the window awnings and verandah posts typical of the early 1900s. While the house itself was not listed as a Heritage item in the Newcastle LEP 2012, it is located within the Cooks Hill Heritage Conservation Area and is nominated as a Contributory Building.

The front door at the side of the house is typical of the design and a wide overhanging verandah at the street frontage is accessed internally by ornate glass doors, typical of the style now so much in demand.

Together with her husband Grant Maule, the couple acquired the property and moved in twelve months ago and have been transforming the interior of the classic home into a more practical floor plan to accommodate their young family, whilst at the same time creating an ongoing business literally from the ground up….

Story Marilyn Collins. Images Bree Sanders.