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Sawmill Treehouse by Robbie Walker. Picture: Tasha Tylee.<\/p>\n
Four Victorian houses including a High Country spaceship-like cabin have been named among Australia\u2019s most exceptional homes of the year.<\/p>\n
The 2025 Houses Awards presented by Houses magazine recognised multiple abodes across Victoria, NSW and QLD.<\/p>\n
The New House Under 200sq m category winner was the tiny Sawmill Treehouse by Mansfield-based designer Robbie Walker.<\/p>\n
RELATED: 2025 Victorian Architecture Awards hail best in the business<\/a><\/p>\n \u2018Jewel box\u2019 beach house shines bright at national architecture awards<\/a><\/p>\n AIA awards, Houses Awards showcase Vic\u2019s most spectacular properties of 2024<\/a><\/p>\n With its otherworldly appearance, the 48sq m home surrounded by gum trees has drawn comparisons with a spaceship.<\/p>\n The best New House Over 200sq m gong went\u00a0to Ivanhoe\u2019s Hedge and Arbour House by architecture practice Studio Bright.<\/p>\n In Carlton, a property by Architecture Architecture received the House in a Heritage Context award.<\/p>\n The circa-1870s terrace was turned into a home featuring a garden studio for the owners to write and paint in.<\/p>\n And a Carlton house alteration and addition by Lovell Burton Architecture also won an award.<\/p>\n The historic cottage was extended and renovated to incorporate family-friendly touches such as burnished concrete floors for children to ride their bicycles on.<\/p>\n Sawmill Treehouse was built as a small cabin with a calming and serene interior where visitors can feel at one with nature. Robbie Walker. Picture: Tasha Tylee.<\/p>\n The cabin is located in an Alpine National Park. Picture: Tasha Tylee.<\/p>\n Another Victorian recipient was Windsor\u2019s Ellul Architecture which was presented with the Emerging Architecture Practice gong.<\/p>\n Houses magazine editor and the awards\u2019 jury chair, Alexa Kempton, said many of the winning homes demonstrated inventiveness with several championing sustainable design \u2013 including Sawmill Treehouse.<\/p>\n Mr Walker said the cabin\u2019s owner had spent time camping on the property before she commissioned the cabin.<\/p>\n An ultra-minimalist retreat set among the treetops. Picture: Tasha Tylee.<\/p>\n As a result, she fell in love with its tall trees and did not want any removed during construction.<\/p>\n The client asked Mr Walker to design a small home to share with her family and friends, which she also rents out for short stays.<\/p>\n It features a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living room with services concealed below the floor and behind stairs.<\/p>\n Being in a high-risk bushfire area, its external material is nonflammable steel while the interiors are timber.<\/p>\n Hedge and Arbour House by Studio Bright, wrapped in vines, where the outdoors meets and melds with a modern home. Picture: Rory Gardiner.<\/p>\n The home\u2019s architecture \u201cdissolves\u201d into the surrounding outdoor natural environment. Picture: Rory Gardiner.<\/p>\n Mr Walker said its location near a gully that collects water from the surrounding area posed some difficulty during the design process.<\/p>\n His innovative solution was to put the house on stilts, allowing water to flow underneath.<\/p>\n \u201cThe large tall trees that fill the area were the inspiration for the tall columns, which were based on the tree trunks,\u201d Mr Walker said.<\/p>\n \u201cThey extend past the building just like the trees do.\u201d<\/p>\n Another small building on the site has a garage, laundry and outdoor kitchen.<\/p>\n Named Mess Hall, the home by Architecture Architecture features an artistic retreat where the owners can enjoy time painting and writing. Picture: Tom Ross.<\/p>\n The Victorian-era terrace\u2019s former narrow corridors and shadowy rooms have been transformed into light-filled spaces for a family to live in. Picture: Tom Ross.<\/p>\n Mr Walker described his client as the true hero of the project because \u201cchoosing to build something small when you have the space to go bigger takes real courage\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cReal estate agents advised that a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house would fetch the best price if they ever decided to sell,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Banks would likely struggle to value a one-bedroom home in a rural area, while planning and building permits for smaller projects require the same consultants, reports and approvals as larger ones, he noted.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, after all that effort, resisting the urge to simply double the material use and add extra bedrooms is no small feat,\u201d Mr Walker said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a system that rewards excess, choosing to build less \u2014 not out of necessity but out of principle \u2014 is just as, if not more, important than the materials themselves. Seeing that decision through takes real courage.\u201d<\/p>\n Carlton Cottage is a reworked 1870s workers\u2019 featuring large pivot doors and a sliding fence panel. Picture: Rory Gardiner.<\/p>\n The 2025 Houses Awards winners:<\/p>\n Australian House of the Year \u2013 Blok Three Sisters by Blok Modular and Vokes and Peters, Queensland<\/p>\n New House Under 200 Square Metres \u2013 Sawmill Treehouse by Robbie Walker, Victoria<\/p>\n New House Over 200 Square Metres \u2013 Hedge and Arbour House by Studio Bright, Victoria<\/p>\n House Alteration and Addition Under 200 Square Metres \u2013 Carlton Cottage by Lovell Burton Architecture, Victoria<\/p>\n Carlton Cottage is home to a young family. Picture: Rory Gardiner.<\/p>\n House Alteration and Addition Over 200 Square Metres \u2013 Cloaked House by Trias, NSW<\/p>\n Apartment or Unit \u2013 Blok Three Sisters by Blok Modular and Vokes and Peters, Queensland<\/p>\n Small Project \u2013 Window, Window, Window by Panov Scott, NSW <\/p>\n Sustainability \u2013 Cake House by Alexander Symes Architect, NSW<\/p>\n House in a Heritage Context \u2013 Mess Hall by Architecture Architecture, Victoria<\/p>\n Emerging Architecture Practice \u2013 Ellul Architecture, Victoria<\/p>\n Sign up to the Herald Sun Weekly Real Estate Update. Click here<\/a> to get the latest Victorian property market news delivered direct to your inbox.<\/p>\n MORE: Unique Templestowe house above 8m void hits market for $1m<\/a><\/p>\n Kew home featured on Grand Designs Australia hits market<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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