Creating a sustainable home was a key concern for Phillip and Deborah. To minimize their environmental impact the floors, walls, and ceilings were lined in recycled Oregon timber, repurposed from an Auckland building, and they insulated their home themselves with New Zealand wool, offsetting the cost of the material.
The main living area within the encampment accommodates friends and family year-round. An expansive sofa by New Zealand manufacturer Forma is an extension of the space rather than an item inside it. “Most of our furniture is part of the body of the house … We love our couching, we can spread out and watch TV, read a book, talk, and sleep if we want to. It is so comforting.”
The sofa and walls enveloping it are upholstered in Nature by James Dunlop, creating a warm and comfortable cocoon of wool-blend fabric which adds impressive acoustics to the Island residence. Space is cleverly utilised in the architecture of the home, with one end of the sofa acting as bench seating for the timber dining table.
“The elegant simplicity of the form inside the living pod takes your eye from the floor to the ceiling with minimal disruption to the design ... The snugness of our 11-metre-long couching with the same wool lining as the walls behind means that all 12 of our family, including partners, have somewhere to relax during family gatherings. It’s a bit reminiscent of our days on Mt Ruapehu at the Ski Club.”
Cut into the upholstered wall is a bay window, connecting them to the valley and vast ocean beyond. “Some of the trees in this area are 200-300 years old and create a wonderful contrast to the more recent regeneration ... Looking down on the kanuka trees you see a pillowing effect of foliage. It is beautiful.”
Phillip and Deborah compare the construction of their home to that of a “very large, complex, piece of bespoke furniture,” constructed meticulously by builders Liam Ramsey and Hilly Bridger.
The grain of each piece of timber is maintained in the living pod, running from floor to ceiling without joins through cabinetry or doors. It is a testament to the celebration of nature that sits at the heart of this build. “For us both we have no favourite parts of the house. Within every piece of the house there something that makes you stop and think or stop and take in the view.”
For architect Nat Cheshire, the courtyard is the essential point between the spaces. “When it rains, one gets wet moving between living and sleeping spaces. There is a bravery in living this way. With this bravery comes total immersion in the landscape, the seasons and the weather, a reward altogether its own.”
Photographer: Jackie Meiring
Product used: Nature by James Dunlop
