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Welcome Kelly & Matt.
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Our concept frames a grounded home that offers sanctuary and warmth. It's a place of peace, exploration and play. This is a retreat that feels intimate when needed and expands to accommodate the tribe when the time comes. 

The design is guided by two organising principles:
1. Unique, interconnected external spaces.
2. Flexible and cosy interior nooks.
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The design is site specific for the prevailing winds and neighbouring buildings.
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Particular attention has been paid to solar gain in the layout of the design.
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The outdoor areas are designed to protect from the wind in all seasons.
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The fireplace plays a central role in the home of bringing everyone together. Each space is separate but overlaps the next to form a house that feels interwoven but also separate. This view is taken during the Winter Solstice.
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The placement on the land has been carefully chosen to allow for uninterrupted views but also privacy from neighbours and your current home.
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The sloping land allows for overlapping spaces, terracing down the property.
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There are open, visible aspects throughout the building to create coherence between indoor and outdoor space.
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We use a holistic design approach to sunlight and warmth so your home is comfortable and energy-efficient in all weather and seasons.

This modelling considers ideal solar gain for each space, e.g. the kitchen is a space that is activated at least three times a day and everyone loves a sun-filled breakfast nook. This has been achieved through orientation, apertures and location within the building. 

Sun hits thermal mass throughout the day, warming dense materials that release heat in the evening.
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Uniquely proportioned eaves ensure well-lit, warm living in Winter and respite from harsh rays during Summer.​
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Looking North through the living room during the Winter Solstice
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Looking North through the living room during the Summer Solstice
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The building is an encampment of structures, reflecting summer days of flexible living.
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At the heart is the kitchen, designed for ample storage and accessibility. The kitchen island bridges indoor and outdoor living. It's an invitation to a morning coffee in the sun or casual evening dining outdoors.
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Morning or evening, the kitchen is the hub of sociality and daily life. Essential electrical, heat and water systems are congregated to conserve energy and centralise utilities.
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All day, all year, the kitchen nook is bathed in warmth, a secluded spot but interconnected to the rest of the family.
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The terraced kitchen absorbs light all year round and is inter-connected to key exterior and interior spaces.
Sun fills the kitchen all year round. The layered terracing of this room provides connection to the adjacent dining area and winter nook. Congregate around the large central island or snuggle up with a book on a window seat by the fire: no one is too far away but spaces feel unique and without clutter.
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Locally milled timber forms the majority of the internal envelope, with corrugated steel wrapping the exterior.
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Interiors seamlessly unfold into the environment. Each space frames a well-proportioned view of the surrounding landscape.
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The perfect home is balanced by interstitial spaces that weave together privacy and interaction.
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Carefully positioned windows ensure that the kitchen is sun-filled in Winter, and delicately shaded in Summer.
The kitchen is the social hub of the home. Connected to the dining area but also the outdoor areas through bench-height windows. These windows allow food to be passed out to the BBQ or down to the pool. A central island can be configured for cooking or a sink, with optional hanging storage from the trusses above. 
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Warm and natural materials define the palette: exposed aggregate concrete for thermal mass, Japanese Cedar and Eucalyptus for enduring internal flooring and paneling and marine grade colorsteel for a maintenance free roof.
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nick@otogroup.nz          022 309 0531
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