Architect Glen Iris
Glen Iris is built on interwar and postwar homes: solid brick houses on generous blocks, leafy streets and the Gardiners Creek parklands running through the middle. Owners here tend to love the suburb and the block, and want the house to catch up with how they live now.
Zen Architects designs extensions, whole-of-home renovations and new homes across Glen Iris and the neighbouring inner east. Every project is led by our directors, Ric Zen and Luke Rhodes.
A split-level home on a sloping block.
Trail House, next door in Ashburton, sits on gently sloping land and was designed to work with it. The house steps down as a split-level home, with a series of interconnecting rooms that keep clear lines of sight through the house and bring in as much light as possible.
Natural materials are used inside and out to tie the house to its garden, and passive solar design brings warmth in winter and catches cooling breezes in summer.
Project shown: Trail House, Ashburton. Builder Prostart Constructions. View the project
Interwar and Postwar Extensions
Keeping the character of a solid brick home and reworking the plan around light and garden.
Homes for Sloping Sites
Split levels that follow the land rather than fight it.
Passive Solar Design
Northern light, winter warmth and summer breezes designed in from the start.
A private conversation with one of our architects about your Glen Iris property. Arrange a design consultation
Questions worth answering.
Which council does my Glen Iris property fall under?
Glen Iris is split between the City of Boroondara and the City of Stonnington. The boundary runs through the suburb, so two neighbours on the same street can sit under different planning schemes. We check which applies at the first meeting, because it shapes the overlays, the setbacks and whether a heritage question arises. You can check your own property's overlays with a free planning property report from VicPlan.
How do Glen Iris's block sizes affect what is possible?
Generous by inner-east standards, with larger allotments towards Gardiners Creek. That is enough room for a proper addition without losing the garden, which is the balance most Glen Iris briefs come down to. Orientation matters as much as size, and getting northern light into the living areas is usually the first design move.
Does Zen Architects work with Glen Iris's Interwar and postwar homes?
Yes. They make up much of the suburb's housing. Solid brick, well proportioned, and often planned for a way of living that no longer applies. The approach is to keep the character and rework the plan around light, garden and how the house is actually used.
How does Gardiners Creek affect building in Glen Iris?
Properties close to the creek can carry flood-related overlays under either council's planning scheme. Where they apply, they shape floor levels and siting rather than preventing work. We check overlays against the property before the brief is fixed so nothing is designed twice.
What kind of clients does Zen Architects work with in Glen Iris?
Clients who have a good house on a good block and have reached the point where it needs to work differently. Often the children have left, the plan no longer suits, and the decision is whether to move or to make the house right.
We also work with clients in neighbouring Malvern and Camberwell.