Designed across a period of significant change, Esplanade II Residence by Travis Walton Architecture evolved alongside the family it was created for, now tailored less by daily activity and more by the moments that bring everyone back together.
Produced in partnership with Winnings
The initial plans were drafted in 2018, but the home they envisioned took shape slowly across the years that followed. Situated on Port Phillip Bay, the iconic horseshoe-shaped marine embayment along Victoria’s central coast, the project was originally conceived as a bustling family hub. Then came delays, lockdowns and shifting needs. By the time construction was underway, the children had grown up and moved out, and the brief quietly changed: a retirement base for the parents, a place for family to come and go.
“The project evolved quite a lot over time,” founder and lead architect of Melbourne-based firm Travis Walton says. “A lot of the decisions came back to how the owners wanted to live. There are large spaces where the family can reconnect and host guests, such as the kitchen and dining areas, and then there are quieter moments where they can truly retreat.”
From the street, the home presents as one unified form despite comprising two separate townhouses joined by a façade of textural limestone, travertine and single-pane glass accents. On entry, a double-height ceiling draws light from the skylight above to the ground floor below, illuminating a collection of furniture and art, among them an abstract tufted mirror by Swedish designer Alfhild Kulper and a cast Murano glass lamp by Hannes Peer for 6:AM Glass.
Natural stone is paired with walnut veneer and champagne-toned metalwork, softening the precision of the integrated composition of Winnings appliances: a PITT natural gas cooktop, a Wolf 76cm M series pyrolytic built-in oven and a concealed Sirius downdraft rangehood.
The dining area sits adjacent to a Calacatta Vagli plinth that runs from the first-floor entry through to the adjoining living spaces.
The scullery absorbs most of the practical elements of cooking, and is equipped with appliances from Winnings, including a Wolf 91cm contemporary induction cooktop, a Sub-Zero 76cm fridge/freezer with internal dispenser, a Falmec Milano+ 60 undermount rangehood, two Miele 60cm Artline pyrolutic built-in ovens and a Miele 45cm compact combi-steam oven.
The ground floor is given over to the quieter functions of the home. The primary suite maintains a close relationship to the garden designed by Nathan Burkett Landscape Architecture, while three guest suites and a piano room accommodate visiting family and friends. Throughout, double-height voids bring daylight into the centre of the plan and maintain a connection to the landscape.
A spiral staircase rises beneath a three-metre circular skylight, where morning light filters softly through the opening before strengthening overhead by midday, changing the atmosphere of the space as the day unfolds. “It’s really the heart of the home,” Walton says.
Upstairs, the home opens outwards, anchored by ocean vistas and a calm, tonal palette of caramels and creams as the backdrop changes. The connection to Port Phillip Bay shaped the planning of the upper level, where living, dining and kitchen spaces were positioned to capture the waterline through minimal glazing. The bay becomes part of daily life, and the kitchen takes on its role as the social heart of the home.
Designed around entertaining, the space holds visual restraint and professional-grade performance in careful balance. “With this selection of appliances, it was about keeping all the elements high performing, but visually recessive,” Walton says. “The main kitchen reads quite clean and composed, while the scullery handles the more practical side of daily cooking.”
Natural stone, walnut veneers and champagne-toned metalwork establish a soft material backdrop, while integrated appliances from Winnings support the practical demands of hosting. A PITT natural gas cooktop sits flush within the L-shaped stone island, paired with a Wolf 76cm M series pyrolytic built-in oven and a concealed Sirius downdraft rangehood system that disappears when not in use, allowing the room to read less as a working kitchen and more as a place to gather.
Discreetly enclosed within a walnut veneer joinery box, the scullery handles the real work of hosting, including a Wolf 91cm contemporary induction cooktop, a Sub-Zero 76cm fridge/freezer with internal dispenser, a Falmec Milano+ 60 undermount rangehood, two Miele 60cm Artline pyrolutic built-in ovens and a Miele 45cm compact combi-steam oven—a suite of appliances from Winnings, all scaled to the entertaining life the owners envisioned when the brief shifted from a full-time family residence to one designed around casual visits.
More than a year after completion, Walton says the home has settled into the role it was designed to play, a place that accommodates changing patterns of living. “It’s great to come back to the home after more than a year and see how they’re using the space, how it’s evolved,” he reflects. “The family has really embraced the house as a place to bring everybody together, and ultimately, the home has continued to evolve and grow with them, which is something we are very proud of.”
At the rear, the pool edge aligns with planted boundaries and outdoor seating zones, forming a gradual transition between architecture and landscape.
To the east of the entry, a double-height lounge sits beyond the guest suite wing. A Minotti sofa is oriented to the outlook of the garden. Nathan Burkett Landscape Architecture’s landscape extends the living spaces outward, where planting, stretches of grass, a sunken pool and an alfresco form a visual connection to the bay beyond.
The primary bedroom sits to the west, separated by an angled entryway that filters sightlines into the space. Custom illuminated Rimadesio doors define the robe, paired with an onyx-topped island bench within the dressing zone.
The primary ensuite pairs full-height stone and onyx surfaces with filtered light from a glazed shower opening, softening the density of material, while an Agape bathtub anchors the space.
