Our brief was to create a home evoking feelings of houses in France the client had spent holidays in – buildings that were simple, old and build of materials that stood the test of time – but adapting them for the New Zealand climate and location.

The home is a community of buildings including a boatshed and two self contained bedrooms for guests linked together with covered lean-to verandas providing shelter and privacy. Macrocarpa timber beams, rafters and plastered walls of a sunny sheltered alfresco courtyard provide an aged weathered feel.