'Hygge' in the highlands

DESKTOP

MOBILE

Designed by: Eliska Lewis, Eliska Lewis Architects

Photography by: Simon Devitt

Owner brief and design response

For this young New Zealand-Danish family the house will be a retreat for large family gatherings during the next couple years while they are working overseas, with an aim to one day occupy the home as their full time residence.

Danish design principles featured in the brief for a functionalist style that emphasises simplicity, elegance, and energy eﬃciency.

Danish design is also known for its clean lines, use of natural light, natural materials, and the notion of “hygge” (cosiness) with rooms that have a warm and textured feel.

The owners requested a ﬂoor plan that was consolidated in footprint and would be able to entertain and sleep 12 people.

In response to this, sliding doors make larger areas connected yet can transform into smaller private areas.

Plus, circulation spaces double as other functions such as a second lounge.

The bunk rooms can be combined as one large room or be split into two rooms, and open out onto a rooftop deck.

They also feature pop out nooks, providing desk space and re-orienting the exterior wall to better access the lake views.

Living room in pale tones and pale furnishings together with sculptural coffee table.. — Living room in pale tones and pale furnishings.

Vertical timber slats enliven the house with plays on privacy, light and shadows, at various angles at diﬀerent times of day.

A pallet of blonded timbers lightens the interior in keeping with the owners’ brief, and continue out to deep verandah overhangs and decks.

Pops of colour contrast with the use of darker timber accents, metallic gold ﬁnishes, and greens in tile work and textiles.

Sliding screens and movable sails provide shelter while letting light through and can be adjusted for the changing seasons.

Construction methods were implemented for thermal performance, and materials have been selected for durability and natural beauty – they come together in a showcase of craftsmanship building.

Project site and context

The 998m² site has a suburban context and currently borders forested land to the East that one day could change to housing.

Mountain views are all around, with expansive lake view potentials from a second storey.

Access to the site is from the East with topography gently sloping to the West.

A challenge for the project was ﬁnding a way to have visual access to the lake and mountain views while maintaining privacy from neighbours.

This desire for both shadow (umbra) and light (lux) at same time, gave rise to the concept of using screens that have a depth to their dimension, so that when viewed side on the screen wall will look solid to the passerby, but when viewed straight on are see through.

Flowing indoor outdoor connections inform the character of the home – wood flooring gives way to timber decking. — Flowing indoor outdoor connections inform the character of the home.

Material selection, method of construction

Walls were comprised of pre-fabricated LVL timber framing with a second layer 45mm service cavity to add insulation and to cover thermal bridges.

To further address thermal bridging, the steelwork skeleton was designed in most places to be exposed and on the exterior of the house rather than within the wall frame, and in turn became an architectural feature of the project and a connection point for the various privacy and shading screens.

Walls were clad in colour steel for durability and low maintenance.

Glazing is high spec double Low-E to reduce heat loss and solar gain, ﬁtted into thermally broken frames.

The ﬁrst ﬂoor level roof is pre-fabricated truss construction with double layers Batts insulation and colour steel cladding, while the ground ﬂoor roofs have a membraned warm roof system.

Arriving up timber stairs to bedrooms and enhanced lake/mountain views. — Arriving upstairs to bedrooms and enhanced lake/mountain views.

Interior joinery was carefully thought out to form service cavity and pathways for the heat recovery ventilation system to keep walls and ceiling insulation uninterrupted.

Interior ﬂoors are a combination of oak ﬂooring and polished concrete on a raft slab system.

Bathrooms walls are textured with Luna plaster render that blend seamless into porcelain slabs.

Abodo timbers were used for exterior screens, decks, balustrades, and soﬃt linings that ﬂow through to the interior with Low VOC coated blonded timbers, American White Ash panels and Ashin T&G planks employed for wall and ceiling linings and joinery.

The combination of elements ﬁt the homeowners’ brief for warmth and texture.

West elevation showing indoor-outdoor flow and home’s strong Colorsteel roofing.

Find more design ideas and inspiration at trendsideas.com

Credit List

Architect Eliska Lewis, Eliska Lewis Architects	Builder Dunlop Builder
Kitchen designer Eliska Lewis	Kitchen manufacturer Firman Joinery
Interior designer – kitchen, bathrooms, linings, joinery, lighting Eliska Lewis	Soft furnishings Wanaka Interiors
Landscape Owners	Cladding Stratco 900 colour steel wall cladding; Colorsteel Endura in 'Flaxpod'; exposed structural and architectural steelwork by Select Engineering
Roof Nuralite Nuratherm Warm Roof in colour 'Slate'; Trim Rib colour steel wall cladding; Colorsteel Endura in 'Flaxpod'	Louvre system Shade sail by Shade NZ; fabric sail – Monetec in 'Karloo Sand'; wave sail – NuRange retractable shade in 'Black'
Window/door joinery E13 Vistalite Pacific Thermal Suite joinery in 'Matt Flaxpod' with Zebratti Architectural handles	Main flooring/bedroom flooring Engineered Oak flooring in 'Aspiring Ohau', by Wanaka Wood Floors
Rugs Rugs, cushions and throw blankets throughout the house are from a mixture of Baya & Weave	Bathroom tiles All supplied by Casa Mia Wanaka – Hanoi Wild Olive; Coco Verd Matt; Icone Blanc Natural Matt; Minokoyo White Matt Mosaic
Wall coverings Bathroom walls and above fireplace – decorative plasterwork by Dowd Concrete + Plaster; feature timber panelling – Hermpac T&G panelling species Ashin with Dulux Intergrain Ultraclear + tinted 'Icy White	Paint, exterior and interior Dulux; Abodo exterior protector oil
General heating Supplied by Airmax – Underfloor heating: Rehau Rautherm; heat pump – Daikin; mechanical ventilation – Mitsubishi Lossnay; gas hot water system – Rinaii	Fireplace Escea DS 1400
Control systems PDL Iconic Style plates in colour 'Crown'	Feature lighting Stairwell lanterns – Folie Pendants, by Bover, supplied by Accent Lighting; living room pendant – custom shades, by Wanaka Interiors; dining pendant – Tasman Double Pendant, by Nightworks; bathroom pendants – Marz Designs Terra Pendants, supplied by Inlight; bathroom wall lights – Marz Designs Selene Surface Sconce, supplied by Inlight; kitchen island – Cerra Brass Hanging Light, by Nordlux; Reading light master bedroom: Astro Lighting Edward Wall light by ECC lighting
Dining table/chairs Custom Woodwrights Adobe Dining Table - American Ash with Mid Brown Ash finish; chairs –Soren Liv - Isaac; dining chair in Vintage Tan PU; bar stools – NED Collections	Living area furniture Sofas New Zealand made by Modern Chair – Como 2.5 Seaters – in fabric: Charles Parsons Jake colour Linen; arm chairs Woodwrights frame, chair fabric JD Mokum Eternal Hopsack + Mid Brown Ash Timber; den sofa New Zealand made – Kovacs Bronx Modular in fabric Zepel Casual, colour Flint
Other Prime Panels timber veneered panels American White Ash Crowncut, 1st Coat: Mirostain 2616 TV White Colour Wash, Top Coat: Mirothane PU5577 Sunshield Clear Topcoat Gloss level: Natural Matt; Kitchen benchtops and splashback, and bathroom vanity tops: Laminam porcelain slabs in Naturali Pietre / Pietra di Savoia Perla; kitchen extrusion handles – Halliday Baillie HB370 continuous extruded drawer pull, Gold anodising by Alert Anodising; kitchen surface pull handles by Archant; kitchen surface pull handles by Archant; kitchen and laundry sink mixers – Zomodo Cignus 14EG in 'Eureka Gold'	Awards Trends International Design Awards (TIDA) Homes – Highly Commended