Architects & Building Designers in Maddingley.

“Love working with Ketsa. She is honest and very talented. She has helped design and draw up a kitchen for me. We are also working on a full renovation project. Her attention to detail is very impressive”

“Creative, attentive, efficient, hard working, totally professional and focused on great creative outcomes, these young architects have been a delight to work with. From creative schemes to detailed plans to working with councils, statutory authorities, builders and tradesmen, they couple a youthful innovative approach with a practical hands on attention to building, construction, planning , timelines and budgets which gets the job done. They are conscious of budget and value and have over- delivered at every step of the client architect relationship and Project. Young minds and old heads. We would work with them again in a heartbeat. And I would unhesitatingly recommend them to anyone.”

“It has been great having the opportunity to photograph some of Michael Worth's projects that have recently been completed. The whole process has been easy & smooth with professionalism. Would highly recommend Michael Worth to build your special spaces.”

“Positive Footprints have done an outstanding job from the design stage right through to the building process. The house is on a small inner city block, with heritage and overlooking restrictions. My brief was for a sustainable house, with flexible spaces, outdoor vistas; which was light filled and capitalized on its northern sunny orientation. Extending only two meters kept the garden as large as possible. Three upstairs decks increase outdoor living, cross ventilation and the vistas of sky. Positive Footprints were professional, open and helpful; and provided impeccable craftsmanship. They enabled me to incorporate my mosaic tile designs, the use of unusual materials and other personal interior design choices. A melding of their inspired, sustainable design and my creative input, has resulted in a beautiful and comfortable house which is a pleasure to live in.”

“I engaged Sebastiano from SG2 to design a renovation of our tired and poorly built California 3-bedroom bungalow in West Footscray. I also employed him to administer the contract with our builder. The house required considerable rebuilding. It'd been poorly built and maintained and it was way beyond just reblocking and replastering, so there was an opportunity for extensive modification of the interior. (It turned out the house was in considerably worse shape than the builder originally thought, and in the end essentially only the facade and some of the original roof trussing remained from the original.) I explicitly wanted the design to be more of an update and modernisation of the interior spaces than a large exterior statement. I briefed Sebastiano to: * plan a single level house within the existing footprint that maintained, as much as possible, the original exterior appearance & proportions (I didn't want the house to have an addition visible from the street) * create more useable space, including much more cupboard space, while more or less following the existing floor plan (ie, retaining 3 BRs or 2 BRs & study) in the front half of the house * open up the rear part of the house to more light and the garden while accommodating an old magnolia tree that was growing over the rear of the house * create a long, open kitchen space combined with a "European style" laundry * incorporate DG windows, insulation of all exterior & interior walls, and hydronic heating * develop a plan that wouldn't require extensive planning permissions &c from the local council. We met several times at my house to discuss the brief. Sebastiano took measurements &c, and I supplied him with some roughly drawn provisional plans. Within a few days of our first meeting, Sebastian had spoken with Council about planning issues around the proposed plans and came back to me with provisional drawings which, with only a few adjustments over the next few weeks, not only fulfilled but exceeded the brief. This part of the renovation process took only a couple of months and any delays were a result of my procrastination than anything Sebastiano did. He took care of all permits, negotiations with engineers &c, to an extent that I hadn't expected, which was a great relief. Sebastiano's plan included a modest addition to the footprint which didn't require a permit from Council, and greatly improved my ideas, making some notable additions. Most obvious amongst these was a large light well which opens the the rear of the house to light and provides a high ceiling in line with the roof pitch. This improves the interior space and helps to define the kitchen and living areas without sharply separating them. Now that the house is finished and I'm living in it, I greatly appreciate the simplicity, practicality, and livability of the design. Sebastiano has managed to create modern, spacious areas/volumes inside what is, by today's standards, a relatively small house. The play of light in the rear room(s) thru the light well is a real highlight, as is the plan and finishing of the kitchen/laundry area. All of this done without "periodising" the interior or making an in-your-face design statement (tho I guess one person's in-your-face is another's "meh"). What Sebastiano achieved was, I think, clean, simple, practical design with well thought through details of finish & treatment that fit the original style of the house and, most importantly, my partner's and my way of living. Throughout this part of the process, as elsewhere, Sebastiano managed to allay my tyro renovator's anxieties, provide helpful advice, meet deadlines, reassure me about the financial implications of the project, and to negotiate effectively with my builder. His reassurances helped me maintain at least the impression of humor and confidence throughout what, thru no fault of Sebastiano, turned out to be a very long build. As I mentioned, I also engaged Sebastiano to administer the contract with the builder. In this, I'm sure he went much beyond what I had a right to expect. He attended the site regularly, provided timely and accurate information and advice about the progress of the build. He fielded my ignorance, anxieties, vacillation, changes of mind, outrageous demands, and stupidity with reassuring calm. I always felt he was treating me respectfully, patiently, and more than fairly. He returned all my calls and emails within 24 hours, usually within an hour or two. His recommendations (he always provided some options) about fittings, finishes, and suppliers were invaluable and invariably better in terms of quality and price than anything I could find myself. I felt confident that it was speedier, more economical, and more beneficial to accept Sebastiano's recommendations than to waste time looking for alternatives. Sebastiano promptly and effectively negotiated some variations from the contracted plans and, throughout, tactfully managed the relationship between me and the builder. He had an eye for details and worked assiduously to maintain the standard of the build. I have no hesitation in highly recommending Sebastiano and SG2. He provided excellent plans that met my brief and exceeded my expectations. He worked well with me and the builder; kept the build well within budget; ensured the quality of the work and finishes; is patient and calm; communicates well; and was responsive, patient, and professional throughout the entire process.”

“I have been working with Anna of Instyle Design for many years and would have no hesitation in recommending her to my clients. She is thoroughly professional while being down to earth and practical. Her wealth of experience and approach to each project results in creative design solutions that really work - as an interior designer I see a lot of architectural plans that just don't allow sufficient space for furniture and joinery but Instyle's designs are always clever and well thought out. I also know she has a fantastic rapport with her clients and many of them have had her design several projects for them over the years. I always look forward to working with Instyle Design as I know the permit and building process will progress smoothly and Anna's design will integrate seamlessly with mine - resulting in happy clients!!”

“Dianne has assisted me on a number of projects over the years including a brief to repurpose our home to a B&B. Dianne came up with practical yet fabulous designs from inception to final drawings. The most remarkable project Dianne undertook for me was to assist me when selecting the colour palate and fittings for the internal and external finishes for our new home build. It was a task I was dreading as making the wrong choices would not only have been costly but we would have had to live with the wrong decisions for a very long time. It was fantastic seeing Dianne at work, her eye for colour and detail meant that we motored through the whole day appointment in a few short hours and the results, now that we’re in our home, are totally fabulous.”

“We chose Anne as our Archicentre architect after seeing her work on Houzz. We made the right choice! Not only did she agree to work with us after other architects had said what we wanted to achieve (on our budget) was impossible, but she was able to give us exactly what we needed. She went above and beyond in helping us problem-solve a renovation of a very difficult floorplan on a tiny budget. She came to our house and sat down with us, then sent us multiple sketches and revisions, even updating her own ideas once new options occurred to her. The solution she came up with is wonderful and solved all our concerns, and we were able to manage it on our tight budget. We are almost finished with the renovation now and the amount of natural light, space, and functionality Anne's floorplan has given us is truly beautiful. We can't recommend her highly enough.”

“We used Altereco to draw up our home renovation plans. James was great to work with, he understood what we were after and had great ideas. The job was done quickly and professionally - he really knew what he was doing!”

““I have worked with Manias Associates Building Designers documenting a number of houses, I found Michael very driven to achieve a good documentation result of his work and has always maintained a rigorous checking method to constantly improve. His understanding of design and materials always provided good solutions to any questions that arise during documentation. His detail knowledge allowed Builders to understand drawings and produce a good result in time and on budget. “”