Colonial country look

Paal Kit Homes’ traditional style of home has again been chosen in preference to a contemporary urban design or an architect-drawn residence

Leon and Claire Pholi of Murrumbateman, near Canberra, own two acres on the edge of the village, on which they decided a project home just wouldn’t look right for them and their three young children.

“We visited Paal and were attracted to the country designs, particularly the Camden, although we would have needed to modify the standard plan to include garages,” Leon said.

“We put Paal aside in our thinking and looked at other homes, but didn’t like the out-of-the-box designs. We also examined the custom-designed option and found it was too expensive for our budget, so that was the wrong path for us.

“In the end, we came back to Paal and took a closer look. By then Paal had launched their Hartley design with an integrated double garage. ‘That’s the one,’ we both agreed. No more discussion was needed.”

The couple liked the large open-plan family area, the separate formal lounge room, and a master bedroom away from the living area. They tweaked the design to add a third garage and a workshop.

Leon has a busy career in Canberra so paid a builder to erect the home. “I toyed with the idea of project managing it and choosing my own contractors, but that would have taken too much time. Paal recommended a builder for us, who did a good job. He was also good at selecting and managing his tradespeople.”

The new home is bricked, bagged and painted in the traditional colonial style.

“We love the look and feel, it really suits the country setting. As well as being attractive and roomy, it’s very practical. For example, the mud room between the rear entrance and the interior is great with three children, a dog and a cat. Our visitors are particularly impressed by the spaciousness of the home for a growing family.”

Although it’s intended to be home at least until the family has grown up, Leon said that if they built again, it would definitely be with Paal.