The Design Files Talks

Have you ever lived in a house that just wouldn’t stay warm, or a place that felt like a perpetual sauna in summer? Passive Houses are all about solving these problems before the home is even built, and using as little energy as possible to do so.

In today’s episode, we speak to certified passive house builder and MVH Constructions founder Mark van Haandel who talks us through everything you need to know about this voluntary building standard — which uses 90 per cent less energy than a typical home! 

Read the article featuring the highlights from this episode here, and find out more about MVH Constructions here, and explore the resources on the Passivhaus Association here. 

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This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Momentum Energy.

Saul Griffith is a visionary engineer, scientist, author, and inventor with a plan to fight climate change. The Rewiring Australia founder says the key to urgently reducing Australia’s emissions is by turning everything electric — from our homes to our cars, and entire suburbs — and embracing renewable energy.

We speak to Saul in this episode about how Australia could successfully get off fossil fuels and save the average household money. 

Read the article featuring the highlights from this episode here, and follow Saul's personal Instagram here. Plus, find out more about his project Electrify 2515 here.

Follow us at @thedesignfiles or subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you don't miss a thing.

This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Momentum Energy.

Voice actor Sarah Aubrey is a bit of an accidental expert in sustainability, who started posting educational videos on Instagram after being astonished by how much she saved when she got off the gas and turned her draughty old home all-electric. Now with more than 68k followers, she's on a mission to educate others to do the same! 

In this episode, Sarah shares how much she spent retrofitting her house, how she's already earning back the investment, and why she's so passionate about electric vehicles.

Read the article featuring the highlights from this episode here, and follow Sarah at @electrify_this.

Follow us at @thedesignfiles or subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you don't miss a thing.

This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Momentum Energy.

Tamara DiMattina is passionate about promoting low-waste, sustainable living. So much so, that she actually hasn’t bought anything new for more than 20 years — aside from food and the occasional personal hygiene essentials. Instead, she’s been shopping for her clothing, shoes, furniture, and (literally) everything else, second hand! 

In this episode, Tamara shares how she founded the annual Buy Nothing New Month, The New Joneses, and her journey to change people's attitudes about excessive consumerism.

Learn more about Tamara's work in the full story on The Design Files here, and head to The New Jones website to watch their free episodes on sustainability.

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This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Momentum Energy.

Interior designer and TV presenter Sibella Court is an expert at creating spaces that feel like they have a storied past, and her Bundeena family home is the perfect example. It took a five-year renovation to bring the interiors to life (designed around the character of an imagined sailor!), using salvaged materials and vintage treasures that fill the house with character! 

Hear how the project evolved into her own 'experimental design lab', along with her tips and tricks for creating eclectic interiors. See photos of this unique abode in the full story on The Design Files here, and follow Sibella for more on Instagram here.

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This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Koala. Head to Koala to check out their full range of Australian-designed furniture at down-to-earth prices.

Landscape architects Joel Barker and Hannah Pannell are the husband-and-wife team behind See Design Studio who built their beautiful Perth family home on the smallest possible footprint — in order to save most of their block for the garden of their dreams. The resulting house is just 110-square-metres, and it's one of the most energy-efficient properties we’ve ever featured!

Hear why building small goes hand in hand with sustainability and affordability, and how they achieved an incredible NatHERS rating of 9.3 out of 10. See images of the home and highlights from the interview here. Follow Joel and Hannah's landscape design practice here.

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This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Koala. Head to Koala to check out their full range of Australian-designed furniture at down-to-earth prices!

Courtney Adamo has renovated houses before, but nothing compared to the process of designing and building her family’s beach home. She shares the highs and lows of the design and build process — plus what she'd do differently if building a house again.
See images of the home and read the interview highlights here.

Follow Courtney at @courtneyadamo

Follow us at @thedesignfiles or subscribe to our weekly newsletter

This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Koala. Head to Koala to check out their full range of Australian-designed furniture at down-to-earth prices!
 

We’re back with a new renovating episode! Lucy Feagins sits down with Georgia Frances King and Mete Erdogan who are currently renovating a 1970s brick veneer home in Melbourne’s north. Despite having no renovating experience, they’ve been able to revive the home mostly through DIY updates and some advice from the original owner’s family!

Georgia and Mete share what renovations they’ve done so far, what they’ve learned from YouTube tutorials alone, and how much it’s all cost. See images of the home and read the interview highlights here. Follow their renovation journey at @shagmanor. 

Follow us at @thedesignfiles or subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Koala. Head to Koala to check out their full range of Australian-designed furniture at down-to-earth prices!

In our final episode for 2023, we speak with lawyers-turned-renovators Julie and Vincent Fodera who are restoring one of Melbourne's oldest mansions, a historic homestead in Caulfield known as Heatherbrae. The private property dates back to 1854 and is bit of a local landmark, which the couple have been the proud custodians of since buying it last year. 

Hear how they're lovingly updating the property, why their renovation journey has gained them 16k Instagram followers, and the importance of preserving magical heritage builds like this one. 

Take a look inside the remarkable abode here, and follow them at @heatherbrae1854 to see their progress! 

Follow us at @thedesignfiles and subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you don’t miss a thing. Thank you so much for listening!

Melbourne interior designer Ruby Shields and her carpenter husband Patrick join us to talk about the five-year renovation of their first home in Mount Evelyn!

The couple bought the house in 2018 (that had been left half-renovated by the previous owner) and have been working on it ever since. They share how this journey inspired Ruby’s to land her dream job at design studio WOWOWA, the struggles of renovating while working full time, and how they styled it with a mix of second-hand and designer furniture.

Take a look inside their wonderful creative house and here, and follow Ruby on Instagram @rubyshields_designs. 

Follow us at @thedesignfiles and subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you don’t miss a thing. Thank you so much for listening!