Ash Grey brick tiles create warm and inviting spaces at the Mornington Peninsula Eco Retreat

Morning Peninsula Eco Retreat is a holiday home with a difference. It’s not your typical high-end Scandi-style coastal weekender that’s found nearby. It’s a simple, low-cost, eco-friendly retreat based on passive design principles, using affordable materials and finishes that complement the natural bushland setting.

What makes it a standout is that homeowner and broadcaster, Yvonne Yong, took on the project with a steep, overgrown block, no budget for an architect, and no experience building a home. Enter long-time friend and interior designer, Jung Yun, who worked with the draftsman, from designing floorplans to the interior concept, materials and finishes, to help Yvonne bring her dream weekender to life.

The result is a warm and cosy split-level home with a tight footprint, but one that includes three generous bedrooms (the third used as a multi-purpose room), shared bathroom and additional separate powder room on the upper level, leading down to an open plan kitchen, lounge and dining area, and a large deck off the living area.

The result is testament to Jung’s skill in creating a beautiful contemporary home with a relaxed, yet sophisticated style, even with tight budget constraints.

“It was a tight site and a tight budget, so to get the biggest impact, you have to make a choice on where you’re going to spend your money” remarks Jung.

That choice was cost-effective and eco-friendly materials and finishes; using simple materials in a simple, yet highly effective way.

Set amongst the treetops, the natural landscape informed the material palette, both inside and out: “We looked at the trees, at the colours of the bark, and literally picked up twigs, autumn leaves and rocks, and put them all together and said ‘ok, let’s match this’ … and that’s how we did it,” Jung explains.

From the beginning, they sought locally-sourced materials and products that were an extension of the outdoors. The choice and combination of materials makes this eco-retreat an absolute standout.

Ash grey brick tiles and timber were the foundational materials, driving the decisions on the remaining elements.

Outside, reclaimed Silvertop Ash on the decking and charred Ash cladding at the entrance softens and warms the home’s crisp, black steel cladding.

Inside softness and texture reign. Ash Grey brick tiles are the hero, used as a seamless floor solution in every space except the bedrooms: “If I could have used them everywhere I would have!” says Jung.

“I saw the Ash Grey brick tiles at the Jardan Showroom when it opened, and I’d always loved them, keeping them in mind for a project when it came up. Despite my convincing, many of my clients aren’t open to using brick tiles in the home because they think it’s going to be too cold. But Yvonne was so open to it from the beginning, and that was the foundation of the whole concept we worked from.”

Of course how you use them, and what you combine them with, makes all the difference.

Alongside their tactility, laying the Ash Grey brick tiles in herringbone pattern creates interest and charm, and set against the charred and natural timber, delivers warm and inviting spaces. In the bathroom, as well as being used on the floor they’re used on the walls, laid in a vertical stack.

“There’s a consistency as you walk through the home, which makes it feel larger than it is. Using the same flooring throughout the home definitely helped with that as well,” reflects Jung.

Soft furnishings in dusty pink, terracotta and earthy tones add extra warmth and appeal inside, with views out to the treetops bringing a sense of calm, and there’s an underlying scent of wood throughout, care of the home’s many interior timber features.

Fulfilling seems an understatement to describe the joy Jung feels having seen her designs concepts come to life. Particularly the combination of materials and locally-sourced products joining forces to create the warm, inviting spaces Yvonne was seeking. But for Jung, perhaps the biggest thrill of all is hearing Yvonne say at handover, “Jung, if I ever build in Melbourne, I just want to copy exactly the same materials and colour palette and do it all again.”

Interior design: Studio Jung

Product: Ash Grey brick tiles

Landscape: Luke Murchie, The Heidi Museum of Modern Art

Photography: Dean Bradley Co