Inside a Williamstown Forever Home by Home by MM & Mancini Made

From the street, this classic white Victorian appears to be a perfectly preserved piece of Williamstown's history. It's not until you step through the front door and look down the hallway to see the Freyer project, designed by Home by MM and built by Mancini Made, hiding a sharp, sun-drenched contemporary extension out back.

Walking through the Freyer Project feels like a timeline of two distinct eras. At the front, the traditional proportions, such as higher ceilings, cosier halls, and defined, individual rooms rather than sweeping open floor plans, remain completely intact, honouring the heritage overlay of the neighbourhood. But rather than awkwardly blending the 1800s with the present, the designers found a way to clearly separate the two eras. They introduced a glass-walled internal courtyard to physically divide the old from the new. This break acts as a large light well, pulling sun deep into the centre of the footprint. Once you step past the courtyard, the ceiling pitches upward, the spaces open wide, and you are standing in a strikingly modern rear extension. The change in atmosphere is deliberate and highly effective. It allows the house to have two distinct moods under one roof: the calm, private charm of the historic front rooms, paired with the bright, open-plan energy of the contemporary rear extension.

It takes smart design to make a house look this polished while still working as a practical home for a family of four. Striking the balance between breathtaking architecture and everyday approachability is no easy feat, but Freyer is built firmly for daily life. You can immediately picture the kids dropping their school bags in the hallway, running past the bedrooms, and heading straight out the sliding doors to jump in the mosaic-tiled pool. The materials were clearly chosen for the long haul, ready to handle the chaos of toddlers growing into teenagers. The generously sized stone island in the kitchen serves as a heavy-duty surface built for messy breakfasts, sprawling homework sessions, and casual weekend dinners. The whole space feels tough, durable, and completely ready to be lived in as a forever home.

Executing such a tricky transition between historic and contemporary takes serious building expertise, and both Home by MM and Mancini Made delivered masterfully. The team mapped out a brilliant vision, and the construction work brings warmth and permanence to the project. Building a brand-new, raked-ceiling extension directly against a heritage structure is notoriously difficult to get right without feeling disjointed. Yet, everywhere you look, the craftsmanship holds up. You can see their care in the crisp, clean lines of the black timber cladding and how it sits against the rough, textured recycled red brick wall. Rather than simply throwing up a modern box, the builders spent time creating a genuine conversation between the raw building materials of the past and present. It is a level of hands-on skill making the entire property feel grounded and enduring.

Ultimately, the Freyer project shows us you don't have to choose between preserving the past and building for the future. From the sidewalk, it gives nothing away, keeping its traditional Williamstown character completely undisturbed. Behind the white facade lies a bright, highly functional hub fully equipped for modern living. The contrast ends up making both halves of the house better. It is a project respecting where it came from while catering to where this family is going.

One of the many successes of the Freyer Project's design is how the layout supports two very different speeds of family life. There's the constant motion of the morning rush, and the wind-down after the kids are in bed. Our Routine & Ritual Capsule is curated to outfit a home for both of those moments.

The Routine side is all about the doing. It’s the YAMAZAKI Shoe Rack catching boots by the front door, the soft ENKEL STUDIO Freckle Placemats protecting surfaces during family dinners, and the matte black DESIGNSTUFF Sink Caddy keeping the kitchen island organised. These are the tactile, durable pieces keeping a busy family on track.

Then comes the Ritual, the reward at the end of the day. Once the house is asleep, the mood starts to relax. This is where the smoked glass of the 101 COPENHAGEN Trumpet Tables, the structural FERM LIVING Elysia Candelabra, and the EVA SOLO Ice Bucket tucked into the timber bar nook come into play.

Freyer proves you can build a home for both of these speeds. It's simply about having the practical items to manage the routine, leaving you the space to enjoy the ritual. Explore the capsule below.