Reigo & Bauer’s design for an East Beach home features an off-centre roof ridge and curved overhang at the side entrance, which together give it a slightly canted verticality. According to founding principal Merike Bauer, the design is meant as a nod to the swaying mature trees that rise in the ravine at the rear. But it also gives the house a friendly, approachable feeling; it’s as if it’s leaning its elbow casually on the side fence, open to a neighbourly chat with passersby.