Homegrown studios

A desire to support his adult kids and a passion for sustainable building inspired David’s backyard strawbale project.

When the time came for David and Tes’ children to find somewhere affordable to live, they didn’t want them pushed too far out of Perth. “We wanted to give them independence but keep them close,” David says. “And knowing that they wouldn’t be able to afford to go and buy a place or even easily rent one was difficult.”

David, a carpenter by trade, built two self-contained studios in the backyard of their Perth home. The one-bedroom units, each just 36 square metres, are stacked vertically and classified as ancillary or independent accommodation, much like a granny flat. “They take up pretty much the same footprint as the shed that was there,” says David. They’re fully electric, rated 7 Stars, and packed with salvaged and homegrown materials, including straw and wool from David’s hobby farm.

“I’d been interested in strawbale building for a while,” he says. “And with the farm, it just seemed a pretty good idea to grow my own house.” He chose a tall wheat variety commonly used for hay to ensure long stems suitable for bales. Wool from his Dorper sheep, not typically valued for fleece, was washed and repurposed for insulation in the internal walls and the spaces where he couldn’t fit strawbales.

Throughout the build, David prioritised salvaged materials and a low-impact approach. He carefully dismantled a local church hall floor for reuse as posts, framing timber and a beautiful blackbutt floor in the upstairs studio. “Around 80 per cent of the structure is recycled,” he says. “It was really nice to use all those salvaged materials – it’s a bit of a passion of mine.”

He kept costs down by designing the studios himself, working with architect John Damant from Econests to refine the plans for building approval. While planning permission sailed through, the structural drawings took longer to process. With John’s help, and some back-and-forth with council, the project gained approval. Minor wording changes to the upstairs plan, such as renaming the ‘kitchen lounge room’ as a ‘student studio’, helped get it over the line.

David also ran into limitations with sourcing materials. Aluminium shade louvres he’d seen on other homes weren’t available off the shelf, so he designed his own and had them fabricated by a local metalworker.

The studios are now home to two of the couple’s three children, offering them affordable, independent living while working and studying in the city. Down the track, the dwellings could be used by guests or relatives – or even by David and Tes, if they decide to downsize onsite.

For their daughter Elen, living in one of the studios has offered the perfect balance. “It’s given me the freedom and independence that comes with moving out of home, while still being close to family when I need them,” she says. “As a full-time uni student, I wouldn’t be able to afford to rent right now, so having this space has made a big difference. I’m able to make it my own with furniture and decorations, and I have loved having my own kitchen to cook. It really is the best of both worlds.”

The project has proven to be low-cost to run, too, with energy-efficient appliances and natural heating and cooling. North-facing glazing with sun shades welcomes winter sun while keeping summer heat out, the concrete slab floor downstairs provides thermal mass to regulate indoor temperatures, and louvres above the bedroom doors enable cross ventilation. “If you open the place up after the Fremantle Doctor afternoon breeze comes in, it cools down pretty quickly,” says David.

The studios are connected to the main home’s electricity and water supply. “We haven’t noticed a marked increase in our utility bills, mainly because we’ve got solar panels, so we haven’t had an electricity bill for years.”

Looking at the two studios, it’s hard to believe they were built with little more than salvaged timber and straw, and a lot of resourcefulness.