The harsh coastal environment was also
taken into account in the choice of interior and
exterior materials. The cladding is corrugated
aluminium, rather than corrugated steel, and
the interior is all plywood.
The budget for all this was a very lean
$165,000. “We had to do it entirely on our
savings, so we knew exactly how much we
had to spend,” reveals Briony. Roger says they
simply couldn’t aff ord to pay anyone to build the
house, so part of the deal was that they had to
be prepared to do it themselves, paired with the
generosity of others.
It was a plan that captured the true spirit of
old-school New Zealand bach building, where
you could cobble together a cheap holiday
home in your downtime without much building
experience or know-how. These days, however,
it’s a little more complex because of modern
building codes. And that’s where Guy’s expertise
came in.
With the piles in place — thanks to the help
of some of Guy’s architecture students and
Briony’s local cousins wheel-barrowing four
tonnes of concrete from the end of the road to
the site — and the plywood fl oor laid, the layout
of the house began to take shape.
The lack of direct road access also meant
that craning in prefabricated framing was not
an option, so the entire superstructure of the
house had to be built piece by piece on-site.
And because the site is in a high wind zone,
the timber had to be thicker and heavier than
normal, making the task even harder.
It was at this point the trio’s neighbour,
carpenter Jonny Clark, began taking an interest
in the proceedings. “I’ve known the family for a
long time,” says Jonny. “I just started checking
on their progress every day after work, off ering
help and advice — it’s what you do for
your mates.
“I was raised to believe that if you have the
capability to help someone, then you have a
responsibility to do so,” he adds. From that
point on, Jonny became the fourth member
of the building team. “For me, it was a rare
opportunity to be the primary builder on an
out-of-the-ground build from start to fi nish and
leave my signature on this landscape,” he says.
According to Guy, he really enjoyed the
chance to work and discuss building with Jonny.
“It is not often that the architect gets to work
alongside a builder and both can learn from
each other,” he refl ects.
As the walls went up, the build process
became quite organic, with the family tweaking
the original plans, putting in a bigger window
here and an extra door there. Without the
advantage of having an architect as part ofWE LOVE THE CONTRAST
OF THE DAVID TRUBRIDGE
PENDANT WITH THE TIMBER
PANELS ON THE WALLBuilt-in furniture is not only
a money saver, it also adds
character and individuality