Clifton Hill Courtyard House
Clifton Hill, Melbourne
The house is named for what replaced the usual box on the back: the renovation of this double-fronted 19th century weatherboard cottage swapped a poorly planned 1980s addition for a plan organised around a central courtyard, bringing relief at the end of the cottage's long hallway. A two-storey garden studio stands at the rear of the narrow site, and the work was finished in 2022 for a family with a teenager and twin boys.
The long thin bricks of the pier and the window seat are Krause Emperor in Ghost, and the speckled surface across the island and up the wall behind the kitchen is a single terrazzo, Signorino Bianco Neve. The bar stools are the Muuto Nerd, and the ceiling is whitewashed shiplap timber.
Eliza Blair Architecture
Eliza Blair Architecture is a Melbourne practice led by architect Eliza Blair, working on renovations, heritage extensions and new homes across Melbourne and Victoria since 2016. On this house it worked alongside Studio MKN, the interior design studio of Meredith Nettleton, begun in 2018.
Architecture @elizablairarchitecture. Interior design @studiomkn. Styling @beaandcostyle. Photography Shannon McGrath (@shannonmcgrath7). Seen via @studioblackinteriors.
The picture comes from this post on Instagram.
Researched September 2026. I credit each piece as carefully as I can; if you know more about this one, message me on Instagram.