Residential architecture & material trends 2024
Planning a renovation or a new home build? Let us guide you through the latest architectural trends and materials based on some of our current projects to provide you with some design ideas and inspiration.
Sustainable & resilient design
With increasing awareness of environmental issues, sustainable and resilient design practices will continue to be a prominent trend. We are increasingly designing homes for client's seeking off the grid, passive design, and eco-friendly materials as well as homes designed for flood, slopes, cyclone and bushfire conditions.
New sloped house design for a Central QLD site
2. Biophilic Design - Connecting the built environment to nature
Biophilic design, which incorporates natural elements and patterns into the built environment to improve occupants' well-being, is expected to gain momentum. We will see more greenery, natural light and natural materials like wood and stone featured in residential design.
Natural stone walling, timber detailing, incorporating green roof feature
Natural stone walling, timber ceiling panelling, connection to outdoors.
3. Organic Shapes
Organic shapes are making a comeback into design from curved sofas, kitchen benchtops and architectural features such as walls, archways, staircases. These features soften harsh lines and add a sense of fluidity to spaces.
Curved stairwell, textured walls. Pavers are being introduced to interior as well as external areas.
3. Flexible living
Flexible living remains a key consideration in our interior design process for clients. As we draft layouts and interiors for permanent residences or multi-generational homes, we consider our clients' present and future needs. This ensures the home remains functional and comfortable for growing children or aging parents and accommodates work-from-home or study spaces, as well as areas for leisure and entertainment.
4. Smart homes
As technology continues to advance, smart home features are becoming increasingly popular in residential architecture. This includes home automation systems for lighting, heating, security and entertainment as well as integrated smart appliances and voice-controlled interfaces.
5. Healthy homes
In response to growing concerns about poor quality-built homes, leading to overheating and mould in Australia's climate, there will be a greater emphasis on designing homes that promote occupant health and well-being. Regulations introduced to improve livability and energy efficiency for new residential homes will require higher rated insulation, window glazing, and a focus on quality materials that can withstand the harsh Australian climate conditions. BAAHOUSE & BAASTUDIO Architecture develop designs specifically for the client's site. Slope, aspect, views, privacy and shading, influence the orientation and floor plan layouts for a healthy home that is enjoyable and comfortable to live in.
6. Outdoor living spaces
We have been creating outdoor living spaces integrating cohesively with the interiors for the past decade. This will continue to be a trend where spaces seamlessly integrate with indoor living areas to create a sense of continuity between the interior and exterior environments.
7. Prefabricated construction
The building industry is undergoing significant challenges with builders going into administration due to supply, increased costs and labour shortages. As such we are likely to see prefabricated construction methods, which involves manufacturing building components off-site and assembling them on-site, becoming more prevalent as a way to streamline the construction process, reduce waste, and improve cost-effectiveness.
An example of this is the use of Bondor solar span, featured in many of our BAAHOUSE projects. A roofing system prefinished with insulation, the installation onsite is faster and cheaper. Also, now available in cladding options Walling Archives - Bondor
Second dwelling using Bondor Solar span Bardon Playhouse, Brisbane - Bondor
RESIDENTIAL MATERIAL TRENDS
Increased use of natural materials
We will continue to see visual interest added to residential design with a mix of natural materials such as stone, timber, cladding, and brick. Natural materials such as rammed earth, straw bale, timber, concrete and green walls and roofs will feature more in residential design.
Internally we also see more timber panelling on walls and ceilings. Large natural stone slabs such as travertine on walls and floors. Timber cabinetry to provide warmth, paired with natural stone benchtops and handmade tiles.
Curves, mix of different textures and cladding, timber battens providing visual interest
Rammed earth walls, polished concrete floors, timber paneling ceilings, timber cabinetry.
Concrete roof, timber flooring and cabinetry, curved natural stone kitchen island, connection to the backyard.
2. Texture
Textured walls are trending for their aesthetic appeal and practicality. As well as creating visual interest as opposed to plain painted plasterboard, they bring a warm, rustic vibe to the home. They also have the added benefit of hiding imperfections and marks.
Options to create textured walls inside and out include using plaster products such as Rockcote (see images below) or adding textured paint such as Resene's texture options Using textured finishes in interiors | Tactile textures (resene.com.au).
3. Colour palettes
The current trend in interior design is shifting away from the previously prevalent use of crisp whites and greys, characteristic of coastal/Hampton-inspired homes. The new direction favours warmer, more natural tones, which have been observed to infuse interiors with a calming ambiance. This change reflects a broader movement towards creating spaces that promote tranquility and wellbeing.
4. Aged and timeless
When investing in an architecturally designed home for generations to come, many of our clients want to achieve a design outcome that is timeless and appears aged or will patina over time. This has seen us nominating older materials and traditional building techniques to achieve a timeless design aesthetic. Materials such as shingles, sugi ban charred cladding and cobblestones.
5. Flooring
The current movement in flooring seeks to blend the indoors and outdoors seamlessly. It invites the rugged charm of exterior materials, be it concrete, tiles, pavers, or timber, into the intimate spaces of your home. Echoing this trend, rustic and natural flooring options like limestone pavers are gaining popularity. Their versatility allows them to be used both outside and inside, truly embodying the spirit of this design movement.
Choosing an Australian timber species for decking such as spotted gum, blackbutt or tasmanian oak allows you to also bring this element into your interiors with the option of solid or engineered flooring.
