Not every site calls for sandstone and infinity pools. In Gaven, on the northern Gold Coast where the suburbs give way to the hinterland, the brief was shaped by a steep block, a mature eucalypt canopy, and a budget that required us to be resourceful rather than extravagant.
The Gaven Homestead is a response to that reality. We designed a home raised on timber posts rather than cutting into the slope, using a material palette drawn directly from the Australian rural vernacular — horizontal timber cladding, corrugated metal, and dark compressed panels. These are honest, hardworking materials selected for their ability to handle a bushland environment while ageing gracefully within it. The result is a home that sits lightly on a challenging site and feels like it's always been part of the landscape.
The entry is simple and direct — a timber deck lifted above the natural grade, framed by the same materials that wrap the rest of the home. No grand gesture, just a clear threshold between the bush and the interior. The Arrival
On a steep site, the entry has to work harder than usual. You're not arriving on level ground - you're stepping up into the home. We used a simple timber deck and stair sequence to bridge the gap between the gravel path and the front door, keeping the approach low-key and grounded.
The material transition starts here. Horizontal timber cladding wraps the entry alcove, corrugated metal flanks it, and a single grass tree in a textured pot is the only landscaping gesture. There's no formal portico or oversized pivot door - this is a bushland home, and the entry reads accordingly. It tells you what kind of house you're walking into before you open the door.
Raised on timber posts, the three-storey home allows the natural ground plane to fall away beneath it rather than fighting the topography. Wrap-around decks at each level extend the living area into the canopy while the undercroft provides additional usable space below. Reading the Land
The site falls steeply through eucalypt woodland. The conventional approach would be to excavate a flat pad and build on it - but that destroys the very landscape you moved here to enjoy. We took the opposite approach and raised the home on timber posts, allowing the natural ground to fall away beneath the structure.
This keeps the earthworks minimal and preserves the root zones of the existing trees. As the land drops away, the posts extend to meet it, creating a usable undercroft at the lowest level while the living spaces above sit within the canopy. The wrap-around decks at each level extend the usable floor area well beyond the building footprint, giving you outdoor space on a site where a conventional backyard simply isn't possible.
Not every site calls for sandstone and infinity pools. Sometimes the best response is timber, steel, and the discipline to let the landscape lead.
The staircase functions as the vertical spine of the home. Black steel, timber treads, and glass sit against a full-height timber wall, connecting the living levels while drawing light and landscape through the double-height void. The Vertical Spine
In a home that operates across three levels, the staircase isn't just circulation - it's the backbone of the plan. We used a black steel stringer with timber treads and glass balustrades, set against a full-height wall of vertical timber boarding. It gives the centre of the home a sense of volume and light that you don't expect from the modest exterior.
The floor-to-ceiling glazing alongside the stair pulls the eucalypt canopy directly into the interior. As you move between levels, you're always aware of where you are in relation to the trees. That's the payoff of building on a steep site - instead of looking at the bush from behind a window, you're moving through it vertically, and the staircase makes that experience legible.
Warm timber joinery offsets the dark stone surfaces, while large awning windows above the bench ensure you're working with a view of the canopy rather than a blank wall. Cooking in the Canopy
We positioned the kitchen at the upper level to capture the best light and the longest views through the trees. The palette is deliberately restrained - warm timber lower cabinetry against dark stone benchtops and splashback, with the island detailed in vertical timber battens to introduce texture without adding visual noise.
The large awning windows above the bench are a small decision that makes a significant difference. Where many kitchen sinks face a wall or a splashback - here, you're looking directly into the eucalypt canopy. The polished concrete floor runs through the kitchen and into the dining area, unifying the social zone and providing thermal mass that absorbs heat during the day and releases it slowly through the cooler bushland evenings.
Building With the Bush
The Gaven Homestead was designed around a simple principle - work with what the site gives you rather than reshaping it to suit a predetermined plan. By working with the slope rather than against it, and selecting materials for their resilience and honesty rather than their luxury credentials, we designed a home that earns its place in a challenging landscape.
The corrugated metal will weather. The timber will silver. The eucalypts will keep growing. And the home will continue to recede into its setting, which was always the intent.
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Every great project starts with a conversation about the land, the orientation, and how you want to live in it.