Summit Home Improvements has completely overhauled the living area of this Sorrento residence and added a second-storey parents’ retreat to give the owners what they yearned for.

Making the kitchen the ‘centre of living’ for the owners was the primary aim of he two-storey renovation carried out by Summit Home Improvements on this 1980’s home in Sorrento.

The owners bemoaned how the existing kitchen failed to meet the needs of their busy family lifestyle and were determined to overhaul the entire living area at the rear of the property.

A dedicated parents’ retreat was also something the owners started to yearn for as their children grew older.

Summit Home Improvements senior designer David Burton identified the front formal lounge and dining rooms – both rarely used by the owners – as the focal point for the redesign.

A staircase to the proposed parents’ retreat on the second level was installed in the space that used to be the formal dining room, allowing the existing kitchen to be expanded and reconfigured.

Functionality is the theme of the new galley-style kitchen, which includes large storage drawers instead of cupboards and a bin space next to the dishwasher.

“The kitchen is the centre of living and we were able to enlarge it and create all the working space that the owner needed, plus find an interaction with the main living area, which it didn’t have before,” David says. “She (the owner) wasn’t happy with her existing kitchen because it was small and didn’t provide all the openness that she needed, but now she absolutely loves it because it’s everything she’s dreamt of.”

A long breakfast bar and study nook are other features of the kitchen, which connects seamlessly with the refurbished meals and living areas.

The meals area was made larger than most informal eating spaces so that an oversized and specially made marri table could fit in.

Bi-fold doors in the living area open to the new covered alfresco space and swimming pool, which was installed separately at the time of the extension.

The new second storey includes a large master suite with his-and-hers walk-in robes and a spacious ensuite bathroom, which has dual entries from the bedroom and the powder room.

A cosy sitting area with kitchenette complements the master suite and ensures the top floor remains a self-contained parents’ retreat.

It was all done so that if the owners wanted to take friends up there and have a drink, then no one would have to go downstairs for again for anything,” David says.

“It meets their level of comfort, but at the same time it’s functional for how the whole upstairs section is going to work.”

The top floor also includes a large study or additional bedroom while a balcony off the sitting area has ocean views to the north-west.

The original plain facade was given a modern facelift and, according to David, was the icing on the cake for the extensive renovation.

“There are many different ways of approaching a job and, in this case, the focus was on their lifestyle,” he says.

“It was everything they wanted and they’re just absolutely rapt with how it has all come together.  We were very privileged to have worked with them.”