Step inside Kersbrook Estate, the SALIFE Home of the Year in 2024
Kersbrook Estate has been built on a grand scale that celebrates its rural surrounds, while providing a resort-style lifestyle for the family of six who call it home.
At its heart, Kersbrook Estate is a home designed around connection – connection for the family of six who live here and come together in the beautiful communal spaces, and a connection to the natural landscape in which the house sits, surrounded by rolling hills in all directions.
Everything about this striking new build is grand scale, from the almost 800 square metres of contemporary living space, to the 92 acres of land the property encompasses, including a horse arena and motorbike track.
The sprawling home was designed and built by the team at Glasshouse Projects, led by director Don Iannicelli. It incorporates two living spaces, an art studio, five bedrooms, an office, four bathrooms, a cellar, an entertainment room, patios and pool.
The project came across Don’s desk more than seven years ago, through a work connection with the owner, who also works in the building industry, and knew of the Glasshouse portfolio.
As such, it was a very collaborative approach between Glasshouse and the clients from the beginning, albeit with a few false starts, thanks to the Covid pandemic and some other interruptions along the way.
The entrance to the home features a huge glass pivot door, towering limestone walls and a skylight overhead which all lead the eye down to the infinity pool and gum tree beyond.
“They had three kids when they came to us initially and may have been pregnant with the fourth, so the family did grow between us designing the project and us finishing the project,” Don says.
Things finally kicked off consistently from 2021 and Don explains that the owners gave his team some creative freedom, but the brief was also very specific when it came to certain aspects of the new home.
“It was a pretty fluid design process, and they gave us a brief that was not overly descriptive from an aesthetic perspective, but it did have some tight functional requirements,” Don says.
“The owners were really specific about the kitchen and living spaces, wanting that zone to be quite central, so that it gathers and brings the whole family together, and guests, too.
“But then the brief also included some separation between the master suite and the kids’ bedrooms. With four children, the couple wanted a bit of separation between adults and kids, but then this central space to be the real hub.”
Meticulous design and craftsmanship are on show throughout this grand design, evident as soon as you open the enormous, three-metre glass pivot front door.
On entry, towering walls of Goolwa limestone run either side, joined overhead by a two-metre-wide skylight that leads the eye from here, all the way down to the glistening focal point outside – the 16-metre infinity pool.
Beyond that, the view moves on to a large gum tree that was an integral part of the design process in the initial stages. “We actually had that gum tree surveyed early on,” Don says. “When we were setting out the footprint of the home, we made sure that the centre of the canopy was the starting point our building.
“So, the entry, the skylight and the pool, that was a very strong focus of the initial design brief, it forms a really strong axis that we drew on.”
The kitchen features dark cabinetry and black marble.
Don explains that more than 1500 tonnes of local limestone walling was used to “visually ground” the building in its rural surrounds, extending the limestone to the outdoor area to further anchor the home and create a seamless connection between inside and out.
“In addition to the random-rubble-laid stone walling, a naturally inspired and tactile material palette includes grey ironbark, bluestone, brass and walnut joinery, reinforcing the richness of the visual language,” Don says.
“By using locally sourced stone and rich woods, the project celebrates its environment, exuding warmth and authenticity. Connectivity and flow is achieved in this large footprint by the deliberate repetition of materials such as stone, wood and marble.”
There’s no doubt the “Black Beauty” marble used in the seven-metre kitchen island bench is a hero of the expansive kitchen and living space. Glasshouse’s interior designers undertook an extensive search for the benchtop material, which also features in the cellar.
“More than 30 slabs were inspected with the clients to ensure that the pieces could work as a feature series across the home,” Don says.
While everything about this build feels large-scale and grand, nothing about this home feels austere or unwelcoming.
The mezzanine level was added above the kitchen to balance the volume of the spaces and add more intimacy. The light over the Franco Crea dining table is the Christopher Boots Phasmida pendant light.
This is achieved by balancing the scale of the spaces, for example a mezzanine level has been built above the kitchen to reduce the vastness and create a more intimate feel in the open plan area.
“Just that balance between slightly more comfortable volumes and then bursting out into larger, more volume spaces allows you to play with those two extremes,” says Don.
“But then the materiality and the detailing is also a big part in that using very warm textual materials, such as the limestone, the veneer, some of the marbles that we’ve used through the living space, and all of those textual elements, go a very long way in making sure that those spaces don’t feel inhuman.”
Every bedroom has a prized northerly aspect, with large windows overlooking the pool, towards the dam and rolling hills. The kids’ bedrooms also have in-built desks with windows that enjoy the same incredible views.
A grand piano which sits in the corner of the living space is surrounded by floor to ceiling glass, providing a calming and inspired place to play as you look out to the countryside.
The perfect place to make music looking out onto the inspiring landscape.
Subscribe for updates
Construction of the home took 18 months and Don says the stonemasons from Powell Bricklaying did an exceptional job, from both a structural and aesthetic perspective.
“They were on site for at least six months, if not nine, to be honest. So, they were a big part of the process,” he says.
While there is no doubt Kersbrook Estate sets a new standard in design and innovation – it took out the 2024 South Australian Master Builders Awards for best home over $2 million – the success of this spectacular home is best measured in the lifestyle it provides for the family of six.
“They are super happy,” Don says. “It’s a beautiful space for them to share with their immediate family, as well as when their bigger extended family comes together, it just works so well.
“I know they’re happy just from a performance perspective, how the building works.
“We put quite a bit of ingenuity and thought, not only into the passive design, but also some of the mechanical parts of the building to make it as efficient and easy to live in as possible.”
Don also explains that the family comes from a farming background and love their horses and motorbikes. The property includes a horsing arena on the eastern side of the home, as well as a dirt track for motorbike riding.
The lounge area features warm tones and that earthy palette is continued in other areas of the house, including the walk-in robe.
“So, this is definitely a lifestyle estate,” he says.
This is the biggest project Glasshouse has undertaken, both in terms of size and budget, and while it is large-scale in every way, it is the attention to details that defines the success of this beautiful home.
“Every little nook and cranny, both from a structural perspective and from an interiors and finishes perspective, is well-considered, bespoke detail that we worked through,’ Don says.
“And that was another thing that was quite rewarding, being able to see those details through and make sure that the intent wasn’t lost through the construction process.
Turco Argento limestone has been used in the children’s bathroom, while the master ensuite boasts a bath with a view.
“Having the ability to control both the design and the construction ensures no detail is lost. I think if we had taken out of either of those parts of the process, it would have been stressful, because we would be relying on other people; the builder to deliver our design vision, or vice versa as a builder trying to communicate with a designer and make sure that you’re on the same page.
“But knowing that we’ve got the trust of the client and we can wear those two hats seamlessly ensures a streamlined process.”
On completion of the enormous project, Don enjoyed a walk-through of the home with the owners, taking a moment to reflect on what has been achieved since that first meeting more than seven years ago.
“It’s just knowing that the essence of the building and the feeling you get as you walk through, it’s very soothing, it’s such a relaxing space to be in,” he says.
The 16-metre infinity pool is a stunning addition to this lifestyle estate.
“I think that’s a combination of the setting, but also the architecture that we’ve created here. You just feel as if you’re wrapped in a very solid, nurturing building, that’s how I would describe it.
“This project exemplifies how modern design can embrace and enhance the natural surroundings, creating a residence that is both awe-inspiring and deeply connected.”
This article first appeared in the December 2024 issue of SALIFE magazine.
