Five home designs where masonry blocks star

BORDEN STREET, BRISBANE.

This house – in the Brisbane suburb of Sherwood­ – features GB Masonry Honed blocks in Porcelain inside and out. Designed with contrasting materials and a contemporary colour palette, the home is both stylish and comfortable, plus it’s a smart choice for the Brisbane climate.

THE PALM SPRINGS, PERTH.

In this Mosman Park house, GB Masonry Wedge Breeze Blocks in Porcelain add a decorative touch while protecting privacy and maximising airflow. Designer Webb & Brown-Neaves also used GB Honed blocks (in Porcelain) of varying sizes to create feature walls. In the living room, the pattern of the masonry walls adds detail and ties in with the home’s colour palette of grey, white and timber. Breeze blocks also separate the ensuite from the master bedroom without closing it off.

HIGHBURY GROVE, MELBOURNE.

The masonry blocks look as good outside as they do inside and the concrete look is right on trend in this Prahran home, designed by Ritz & Ghougassian. Here, the blocks (GB Smooth in Nickel) have been laid in a variety of ways to add interest and distinguish one area from another.

Highbury Grove won the Think Brick 2018 Kevin Borland Masonry Award. The finely textured finish and colour variation within each masonry block adds a contemporary touch that’s cool without being cold.

BARTON ROAD, BRISBANE.

A clever combination of Breeze Blocks and GB Honed blocks, both in Porcelain, creates a striking entrance to this house in the Brisbane suburb of Hawthorne. The look is echoed in the interior: both blocks feature throughout the house, creating a cohesive flow that extends to the rear outdoor areas.

EDSALL STREET HOUSE, MELBOURNE.

In this house in Malvern, also designed by Ritz & Ghougassian, floor-to-ceiling glass and a continuation of GB Smooth blocks in Porcelain from the inside to out allow the two spaces to merge. The light tone of the walls makes the most of the natural light that enters this minimalist home. Warm timber cabinetry and polished concrete flooring complement the texture-rich walls.

The range of finishes and colours masonry blocks are now available in means homes built using this hardy material can be cool and comfortable and full of warmth and light. It’s an affordable way to create contemporary architectural flair.

“Masonry blocks are more popular than ever in home builds as people learn how effective they are at blocking out noise and insulating against heat and cold,” says Brickworks Masonry Products Brand & Communications Manager, Michael Monro.

“The sheer versatility of this durable building material is becoming well known, too – there are now over 78 colour and finish combinations in the Austral Masonry range.”

The blocks’ thermal mass reduces the need for artificial heating and cooling by slowing the transfer of heat between outside and inside. In bushfire-prone areas, fire-resistant concrete masonry blocks are an obvious choice. Nature is no match for this building material in other ways, too. The blocks stand up to UV degradation, heavy storms and temperature extremes – not to mention overzealous family members (both the human and canine kinds).

Take a look at the projects below for inspiration on how to use masonry blocks to great effect – no matter what style of house is on your wishlist.