Stepping inside a retro brick home in Adamstown Heights for the first time, Rowan Parker was greeted by a "wild" time capsule of multicoloured felt wallpaper and patterned carpets.
"I was walking through the house and it was wild," Mr Parker said.
"The wallpaper was soft felt - it wasn't just a wallpaper that you touched and it was paper. It was patterned felt and all different colours in every room."
After a year, the untouched house has been reborn, complete with a wine cellar, a pool, and striking custom-designed architectural arches on the home's exterior.
The property, which is nominated for four Master Builders Awards, is now on the market with Tom Lemke of Wilton Lemke Stewart.
It has a price guide of $2.3 million to $2.5 million.
The project marks the eighth "flip" completed by Mr Parker, who owns Newcastle company Coastline Builders and Designers.
His past projects include Chester Le Haus, a high-end renovation on Knight Street in New Lambton that became the seventh most-viewed house on Domain in 2023.
It sold for $2.45 million.
Mr Parker, who is a co-owner of the property, secured the home a year ago at auction for $1.23 million after outbidding a developer who planned to demolish the house and build a block of units.
Drawn to the suburb and the property's corner block position, the seasoned builder recognised an opportunity to expand the footprint while managing to keep costs down by using the existing concrete verandah footings and slabs.
"When you're renovating a home, you have foundations in footings, brick walls and slabs down, that space enabled us to double the top level in size because the foundations were already in place," Mr Parker said.
"All we had to do was build the walls and the roof was already in place, so that played into our hands very well.
"It also had good bones, which was great, and when you're renovating, you are looking at where you can save money and those elements were big savers for us."
By working with the original footprint, Mr Parker was able to double the upper floor area and create four-metre-high raked ceilings in the living space.
Upstairs features three bedrooms including a large main bedroom with a walk-in robe and ensuite, and the main bathroom.
The open-plan design combines the kitchen, living and dining area, including an island bench and a servery window.
Outdoors includes a kitchen with a barbecue and fully stocked bar fridges (with the contents set to be gifted to the new owner), plus a pool that sits flush with the deck.
Mr Parker not only designed the floor plan and built the home, but also picked all of the interior selections himself.
"I have always had a heavy hand in every job that we do with the design selections - I do enjoy it," he said.
"Obviously, with your knowledge of building - I've been doing this for 25 years - you see things come to life and you know what works and what doesn't."
The ground level has a family room, a third bathroom, a fourth bedroom, a mudroom, and a wine cellar that can also function as a study.
Features include dark walnut cabinetry, copper tapware, a cylindrical rangehood, green tiles in the kitchen, and hotel-inspired bathrooms with tiles from Earp Bros.
While the majority of the original structure is transformed, original elements such as the breeze blocks were retained as a nod to the home's heritage.
For the exterior, custom-curved aluminium battens were brought in to lift the home's street appeal, complete with uplighting.
"You try to stick to a budget and not go over, but you're also trying to put all the wow factor elements in," Mr Parker said.
"We tried to go upmarket with it and it reflects in the finished product.
"We wanted to create a house with a bit of soul and we wanted to create a mood that makes you feel like you have checked into a nice hotel."
The project has captured the attention of neighbours - even earning praise from the developer he outbid.
"We've had lovely comments from the neighbours," he said.
"Even the developer that we beat on auction day has reached out and said 'I can't believe what you have done to that house - well done'."
