Mackit Architecture aims to work with clients who appreciate the company’s unique style and approach to well designed homes. It’s an approach that has seen the practice recently win a highly commended award at the 2018 ADNZ Resene Architectural Design Awards.
The project was practice owners James and Susie Mackie’s own family home. It was the first home the couple had ever bought and they were drawn to the potential of the site that came complete with a large oak tree.
Little remains of the original 1950s home on the site, but the foundations and some framing have been incorporated into the stunning new home.
Susie says they lived in the home for a few years first to get a feel for how they wanted to transform it and also to experience how the seasons played out on the site. The house was extended on all sides and the interior completely reorganised.
Clad in a combination of stained cedar and dark titan panel, the house is modern yet retains traditional features such as use of rimu salvaged from the site for a cantilevered bench top, rimu skirtings and architraves.
Susie says the five small windows of different sizes on the front of the house, where the master bedroom is located, have become a distinctive feature. She says the aim was to let in light but maintain privacy.
The knots in the oak tree inspired the arrangement of the windows and the windows frame different views providing the effect of a picture on a wall from the inside, she says. Inside a custom made diagonal bookcase forms another distinctive feature.
Clever touches such as openings from the living area into the hallway to transfer light and heat, a full height cavity slider to allow further privacy into bedroom areas and a rimu slat screen to separate the lounge from the entrance make this house both efficient and functional.
The oak tree on the site not only provided inspiration for the design but also helps with temperature regulation. “It provides us shade in summer to keep the house cool and in winter the leaves have fallen so it lets in the sun.”
Susie says winning the award was confirmation of the great home they had produced: “We live in it every day and are used to it so to get recognition externally that other people thought it was really cool as well was amazing,” she says.
Mackit Architecture was started in 2008 by James who is a registered designer with Architectural Designers New Zealand, a Registered Master Builder and a Licensed Building Practitioner.
This gives Mackit Architecture a unique edge and ability to tackle a project from both a design and practical building perspective.
Although design is the main focus, by undertaking selected build projects Mackit Architecture also keeps these skills alive.
The company is presently working on a project called Mackit Habitat, a three bedroom home in West Street, Greytown which is allowing the designers to experiment with new materials and ideas.
Mackit Architecture works on projects New Zealand-wide, with clients who appreciate a detailed personal approach to design.
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