Brighton Sands: Tranquil LA-Inspired Coastal House

Brighton Sands is a four-level house in Brighton, Australia, by Melbourne practice mckimm, conceived as a calm yet luxurious home for a young family. The coastal residence draws on LA hillside living, with layered interiors, lush planting, and open terraces that keep daily life close to air, light, and water. Every level, from basement retreat to rooftop terrace, leans into organic materials and sculptural forms that stay generous and refined.

Soft morning light reaches across travertine floors, catching the curve of a plastered stair and the edge of a pale oak step. From the circular driveway to the water-lined courtyard, each threshold builds a calm rhythm that carries inside. Air moves easily between terraces, courtyards, and rooms, drawing attention to texture rather than glare.

Brighton Sands is a four-storey house in Brighton by Melbourne-based architecture, interior, and construction practice mckimm, created for Bondi Sands Co-Founder Shaun Wilson, his fiancé Tess Shanahan, and their daughter. The project orients every level around material richness and a blurred line between interior and landscape, with glazing, planting, and water stitching the volumes together. Surfaces, furniture, and light form the main narrative here, keeping the home grounded in quiet luxury rather than display.

Arches Shape The Heart

Sweeping barrel archways set the tone as soon as someone steps inside, drawing the eye through connected rooms and back out toward greenery. Travertine, Venetian plaster, marble, and custom-stained pale oak hold these curves, giving the circulation spine a tactile calm. Three distinct staircases key into this language: a stair that wraps a lift shaft from basement to ground level, a polished plaster spiral from ground to first floor, and a white powder-coated metal stair that rises to the rooftop terrace. The rounded built-in lounge and bar tucked beneath the spiral stair, lit from above by a skylight, read almost like a carved-out interior landscape.

Living Rooms With Quiet Drama

In the main living areas, statement furniture sets a measured, sculptural tone without drowning out the softer architecture. A Pierre Augustin Rose Saint Honoré sofa, B&B Italia’s Cameleonda armchairs, and a Baxter Nepal chair sit on custom Armadillo rugs, their rounded forms echoing the curves of arches and lounge. Vintage Murano glass chandeliers hang above, while lighting by Articolo and Christopher Boots folds warm illumination into the generous natural light. Large openings slide attention outward to landscaped edges, so the living rooms read as extensions of terraces rather than sealed enclosures.

A Suite For Retreat

On the first floor, the master suite is arranged as a sequence from walk-in robe to ensuite, treating daily routines as a slow progression rather than a dash. Travertine finishes and sandy tones reinforce the project’s coastal mood, while carefully chosen pieces, including an Eames Lounge chair, bring in quieter notes of mid-century comfort. The ensuite cantilevers over the alfresco zone, extending the room outward and strengthening the visual link between bathing, sky, and planted terraces. Interior Design Manager Isabella Cini’s brief for a personal, luxurious interior comes through in these small junctions between material warmth and outlook.

Wellness Below, Entertaining Within

In the subterranean level, glazing and carefully placed skylights prevent the wellness retreat from feeling withdrawn or heavy. Natural light filters down to Fysik gym equipment, a sauna, steam room, ice bath, and a meditation circle positioned under a skylight that channels water-filtered light. This soft, moving illumination reinforces the home’s emphasis on calm ritual and slower, restorative use of time. Close by, an entertainment precinct trades hush for controlled glamour, with a cocktail bar lined in rippled bronze glass doors, vintage brass accents from France, and a built-in DJ booth that opens to a private courtyard.

Water, Stone, And Landscape

Outside, a micro-cement infinity pool stretches the horizontal line of the ground plane, drawing reflections of the house back toward the living areas. Multiple water elements, from pool to fountains, merge with Jack Merlo’s lush planting, so exterior rooms feel as composed as interior ones. Feature rock cladding and patterned paving lead down to the basement courtyard, keeping the material story consistent across levels. A cobblestone circular driveway marks arrival with texture underfoot, setting up the shift from street to sheltered garden.

As day fades, artificial light slips into the background, grazing plaster curves, timber grain, and stone edges without hard contrast. The house settles into a low, warm glow that lets the furniture and materials carry the mood. Brighton Sands reads as a layered composition of surfaces, volumes, and light, tuned for everyday family life as much as for generous gatherings.