Look Home

Resource Archive

If you want to save on the post (now that's energy efficient) you could look at an online version of a LookHome™ back issue (and of course, if any earlier issue is out of stock you can find it here.) Browse the whole mag or search for individual articles. Some even have DO IT TV videos attached.

How do you rate?

How does your home score in the green stakes? With so many ratings schemes in the industry, it's easy to see stars. Here's what you need to know.

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Watch out. Termites about.

Your home is often your biggest asset - but termites can chew steadily through your investment. How can you avoid falling victim to these tiny critters?

The future is in your hands

The building materials you choose for your home can have a huge environmental impact.

What lies beneath

Water leakages through showers are common and expensive defects.

Add value to your home

You don't have to rely on the vagaries of the real estate market to add value to your home. These seven smart design ideas can add dollars to your bottom line.

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Room to grow

You can now design your home so it grows — and shrinks — to match your lifestyle.

Tailoring your home

Climate-specific home design is the smartest way to build. Take advantage of your natural climate and save on heating and cooling costs.

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Build your future

In creating our dream home, we’re a nation of renovators and builders.

From brick to slick

Echoes of the past with an industrial edge are used to update this 1950s home.

Six steps to sanity

Following a logical route when renovating can save you both time and money.

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Remember when Archicentre used to have those great makeover concept articles in The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald? You know, how to transform a horror-show into a well-designed haven? Well, we loved them so much (and our readers told us they wanted more floorplans) that we brought them back with a twist. We've also added some of the concepts that are being designed by Archicentre's Bushfire Design Concept service.

Middle Park Makeover

Archicentre architect Christopher McSteen was selected to develop the following brief for the potential buyers of a Melbourne home.

“The home is a traditional single-storey, two-bedroom Victorian weatherboard cottage on a wide, open, tram-lined street,” says Christopher. “A two storey solid brick extension, added in the 1980’s, comprises a spiral staircase and two very large bedrooms at the rear. The family hopes to blend the indoor/outdoor area, add an en suite downstairs, a loo upstairs, and strike a fine balance between Victorian and modern style.”

read more view the floorplan

Ventor Makeover

The site
The site is a vacant block in a small street close to the beach. Most of the blocks in the street have been built on. The rear of the block abuts a foreshore reserve and faces north. There is a slight slope towards the rear. The soil conditions appear to be sandy.
A test will be required to establish the exact conditions.

read more view the floorplan

Bondi Makeover

The brief
The existing three-bedroom house is semi-detached and has an old style rear -with the service rooms currently positioned between the living areas and the back courtyard. Archicentre, the home advisory service of the Australian Institute of Architects, asked Roger Barrett of Barrett Pinet Architecture to open up the home to the rear and maximise the relationship between indoors and out.

read more view the floorplan

Campbell Makeover - Canberra

The property
This featured property is in Campbell – a suburb in Canberra’s inner north, close to Civic, Lake Burley Griffin, the Defence Force offices, Canberra airport and the main arterial roads to the coast, Sydney and the Snowy Mountains.
Architect Graham Legge says the existing two-bedroom house is of brick veneer construction with polished timber floor boards, timber framed windows and timber doors. It is north-facing with large windows and glass doors to the living room.

read more view the floorplan

Fifties Weatherboard Makeover

Houses were different in the fifties. While homes were built to last, the design was often not as well thought through as it could have been. For this couple - whose toilet can be seen from the front door - their architect needed to come up with a well-designed makeover.

read more view the floorplan

Sundial in Brunswick

Archicentre architect Michael Ellis has seized on the potential of this Brunswick property to create a striking, sun-filled modern extension.

read more view the floorplan

First Homebuyers Turn First-time Renovators

Steve and Tammy bought their first home in a peaceful, family orientated area in the Victorian suburb of Burwood. The couple was excited when they found a 1950’s art deco-style brick veneer with a triple-fronted façade well within their budget. Located on a good sized block, light, airy with a backyard and views of the Dandenongs, it ticked all the boxes.

read more view the floorplan

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