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Home Tour: This Northern Beaches Home Blends Australian Coastal Calm with Mediterranean Soul
Designed by Fieldroom, this family home overlooking Bungan Beach weaves Italian heritage and Australian coastal ease into something timeless.
A single glimpse at Casa Bungan’s nuanced interiors suggests that a deeper story lies beneath. Layered and expressive, the renovation of this family home merges the owners’ respective Italian and Australian backgrounds with a sweeping coastal outlook.
With such rich influences, Ryan McGregor of Fieldroom knew that the project had no need of luxury for luxury’s sake. “Instead, it reflects a thoughtful mix of materials and finishes chosen for how they perform, how they feel and how well they suit the clients’ lifestyle. The result is a home that feels authentic, balanced and deeply personal rather than defined by cost or status,” he explains.
“Interiors are often judged by a single image, a space that someone loves and wants to replicate exactly. While that can work for one room, repeating the same look throughout an entire home without variation can feel flat and lacking in personality.”
As well as being “simply true to the people that live there”, the design of the home adheres to Fieldroom’s ethos of timelessness. “We focused on natural, enduring elements of timber, stone, handcrafted tiles and finishes that will age gracefully and develop character over time.
“Proportions, light and spatial flow were considered just as carefully as decorative details, ensuring the home feels calm and balanced rather than tied to a particular moment.”
This adherence to classic sensibility ensures the space will evolve with the family, without dating or losing relevance. “Rather than referencing a single architectural era, the design draws on influences that have consistently endured — Mediterranean warmth, mid-century clarity and a relaxed Australian coastal sensibility.”.
“This layered approach creates something familiar without feeling nostalgic, allowing the home to feel both contemporary and lasting.”
Despite the renovation being completed entirely within the home’s original footprint, the project didn’t come without its challenges. Having undergone multiple past renovations, the home had become a series of disconnected spaces and piecemeal additions, with the breathtaking outlook an afterthought.
Our approach was to open the home to the landscape while ensuring it retained warmth, character and a sense of lived-in comfort rather than becoming a purely view-driven space”, Ryan notes. This included ensuring the palette used within the house didn’t take over either.
“Colour and pattern are present throughout; the home never feels visually overwhelming. Materials were carefully chosen to sit quietly in the background, allowing the overall atmosphere to feel layered, calm and cohesive rather than dominated by any single element.”
“Interiors are often judged by a single image, a space that someone loves and wants to replicate exactly. While that can work for one room, repeating the same look throughout an entire home without variation can feel flat and lacking in personality.”
So for the team, it was all about using materials that would create a journey, rather than a series of individual statements. “As you move through the house, turning corners, descending stairs or passing through openings, colours and textures shift subtly. What sits in the foreground gives way to something new beyond, creating moments of contrast and discovery.”
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“Instead of relying on one dominant finish, we layered materials to build a story across the home. A glimpse of wallpaper through a doorway, a tile change underfoot, or warmer tones emerging in more private spaces all contribute to a sense of progression. The result is a home that feels cohesive, personal and far more engaging than simply copying a single reference image.”
Project Credits
Built By: Tony Root of Keith Root Building
Interior Design: Fieldroom / Jono Fleming Studio
Styled By: Jono Fleming
Photography: Nic Gossage
Loved touring this gorgeous home and looking for more inspo? Be sure to take a peep at this space, designed with slow living in mind, as well as this blushing pink beauty.
