Published: February 14, 2022, on Interiors Addict
It was January 2017 when architect James Pilcher and his wife Alice moved into their first family home in the Sydney suburb of Lane Cove. Alice was pregnant with the couple’s first child and they had plans to update the solid yet tired California Bungalow into something much more liveable for their growing family. Over the course of four years, the couple undertook two separate renovations (one cosmetic and one structural) while adding three babies and a Labrador puppy into the mix. What a ride!
“We did both renovations while I was pregnant and/or managing a newborn. I must be crazy!” says Alice, who is currently on maternity leave from her marketing role at the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), but has always had a passion for interior design. It’s an interest that complements her husband’s work as an architect in his business Mileham, which focuses on residential renovations, knockdown/rebuilds and new builds in Sydney.
The bungalow was in pretty original condition when Alice and James bought it, save for a little 1990s-era extension at the back. They decided to move into the home and get to know it before making any changes but within six months, had removed myriad internal walls and undertaken a full cosmetic renovation at the front of the home. “We only did the front part of the home as we knew we would eventually knock the back down. For 18 months, we lived in this gorgeous house at the front while stepping out the back was like stepping into a time warp!”
