Woolstore
Being the ‘glamour’ floor, the top levels of the woolstores showed greater interior refinement than lower floors. In wool’s heyday, Winchcombe Carson’s showroom was considered palatial enough to host a ball in honour of the Prince of Wales in 1920, to which the cream of Brisbane society flocked. This elegant octagonal pillar with fretwork details, now in the vibrant yellow that appears throughout the apartment, is a reminder of those prosperous days.Because of the proximity to the CBD, the windows present interesting vistas of Brisbane’s city skyline. Being four storeys above the street, in a fairly low-rise environment, privacy isn’t a major issue, and the windows all have grey glare-cutting sheer drapes.
In the woolstore’s heyday, the top floor was the ‘money’ floor –buyers were whisked upstairs by lifts, to appraise the prize fleeces laid out for their inspection. Because natural light, but not direct sunlight, was required for this inspection, many woolstores had distinctive east-west aligned saw-tooth rooflines. The apartment takes advantage of the light and ventilation of the west-facing louvred vertical glass walls. “This roofline directs lots of light into the apartment and created some very interesting perspectives,” says Riley.For after-dark ambience, a massive steel and glass block pendant light dominates the huge space. “It’s the biggest light we’ve ever installed,” comments Riley. “It’s 2.5m across and was originally designed for the Barcelona Olympic Stadium!” Estadio pendant light by Miguel Milá: Santa & Cole
“We had many positive attributes to work with,” says Riley. “The apartment had a strong, substantial character, with beautiful cedar beams and columns, high ceiling volumes, open and interesting spaces and an abundance of natural light. The high ceiling volume meant we could make use of a mezzanine level in what is essentially a single level apartment, to put the master bedroom and dressing area.”The light that floods the apartment’s living spaces from several angles comes partly from the shallow-arched multi-paned double-hung windows. Keystone details in the exposed brickwork enhance their pleasing proportions.
Benctop extension
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