Suburban House

Suburban House is a concept design by H+ Studio for a two-storey family home on the edge of the city in Dong Nai, set in a large garden – a retreat from the noise and pace of urban life. The house draws on the familiar image of the Vietnamese home – a steep red tile roof over a warm cream plastered volume – reorganised for contemporary life, with greenery, light and air drawn deep inside.

The facade is defined by an upper-floor balcony lined with planters and a curtain of trailing vines. This green veil shades the ground floor, softens the volume and changes with the seasons, so the longer the house stands the more it becomes part of the garden. The ground floor sits slightly raised, opening onto the lawn through floor-to-ceiling glass.

Inside, the living room, dining area and kitchen share one tall double-height space. Exposed concrete ceilings, terrazzo floors and a dry-laid stone wall planted with tropical greenery form a rustic backdrop, against which stand a terrazzo staircase with slender brass-coloured railings and a jade-blue wall. A dark timber kitchen, a solid slab dining table and Wishbone chairs bring warmth to family meals.

Looking up through the void, timber trusses and the underside of the red tiles are left exposed, with timber-bladed ceiling fans keeping the space cool. An upper gallery wraps around the void, linking the bedrooms and looking down onto the shared living space below.

The bedrooms use a calm palette: cream plaster, timber floors, vertical timber panelling and walnut furniture. A ground-floor bedroom has a low ribbon window onto flower beds, while the upstairs bedrooms rise beneath the pitched roof and open onto a balcony with a hammock and tropical plants.

Suburban House is currently at the concept design stage.