Tips & Ideas

Joe Lyth, an architect at Auckland-based firm Respond Architects, takes his own newly-built home as a case study on creating warm, dry homes. In light of his findings, he explores some of the cultural, economic and practical reasons why the health of a home isn't always a priority in new builds in New Zealand.

Partner content: Designer Meg Sinclair discusses the origin and process behind the development of homewares brand Weave by Warwick Fabrics. Focused on natural fibres, the range of floor rugs, wool throws and cushions have both residential and commercial applications.

While another recent book about Christchurch architecture, I Never Met a Straight Line I Didn’t Like, reveals what is inaccessible to the public eye, John Walsh’s Christchurch Architecture: A Walking Guide is a tour of buildings that can be seen and, mostly, entered from the footpath. With a focus on the centre bordered by the ‘Four Avenues’ (Bealey, Fitzgerald, Moorhouse and Deans), as well as the Ilam Campus of the University of Canterbury, significant buildings have been chosen and masterfully divided into six walking routes alongside colour-coded maps. This book is for any wanderer of Christchurch, whether familiar or unfamiliar with the streets.

As part of a building enclosure, a ceiling helps protect the house from heat and externalities. As part of the interior, it can also enhance the aesthetics with its various designs, shapes, and materials. An attractive ceiling can even change the overall theme of the room. Here are six ceiling designs for your inspiration.

Living in a big city indeed creates a sense of restriction. Dense population, noise and limited space are common problems for those living in urban areas. Not rarely does this kind of condition trigger stress or even depression to some people.

Homeowners tend to accumulate items when they live in one place for a long time, whereas the space to store these belongings is usually limited. Therefore homeowners need to come up with an efficient storage system.

Most people think that a house’s aesthetics can be enhanced by retrofitting a garden. However, limited space often becomes the obstacle. As a matter of fact, there are several garden designs that can be applied in a small space. These garden designs are not only compact but also easy to take care of thanks to their simple choices of plants, requiring homeowners to do minimal, hassle-free maintenance only.

As the COVID-19 pandemic is still going on, working from home has become a working method that people have to adapt. By now, we may have settled to working in our own home office already. But working in the same workspace while being stuck at home all the time might get dull and eventually affect our work performance. In this case, changing things a bit to refresh your workspace for once in a while can be helpful. Here are a few tips you can follow so that your workspace can always support your work performance.

We all agree that a home should be able to provide comfort for homeowners. It is even more important especially during this pandemic when people spend most of their time at home. A determining factor to create comfort in your home is when the arrangement and choice of interior style meet your needs and expectation.

When you live in an apartment, the only space that comes as close as a private outdoor space is your balcony. However, an apartment balcony often comes only in a small size that it gets overlooked. If designed properly, even a small balcony can be a versatile space where you can do anything from getting fresh air and daily intake of morning sun to hosting a barbeque party and outdoor dining. Follow these small balcony ideas to get the most out of your available balcony space.