Destined to be different
Halfway between Nelson and Motueka sits the Upper Moutere valley, home to a budding family wine and cider business and a newly built healthy home by Stephan Meijer Architects.
WORDS Kathy Catton PHOTOGRAPHY Ana Galloway
Combine a family of winemakers and a desire to do something different, and you get a passionate, thriving business and a family home that breaks the mould of traditional design and build.
Sophie and Mark McGill are the owners of Abel – a wine and cider business, using hand-picked fruit from the clay soils of the Nelson foothills. Sophie’s parents have been in the wine industry for over 40 years, and Mark’s dad has been a viticulturist for just as long. So you could say it was ‘in the blood’ that the couple would end up following in their parents’ footsteps. Add to that their passion for building sustainably, and you have the perfect country home.
THE HEART OF THE HOME The custom Caesarstone benchtop from Granite Designworks is at the heart of this family home.
The rolling, north-facing farm was an apple orchard for 120 years in a by-gone time, so it was a case of ‘coming home’ for the cultivation of this valley with apples and grapes. What the couple have created for their home is something beautifully hidden away, quiet and tranquil.
It was Mark’s brother, Damien McGill, executive member of the Superhome Movement and director of The Healthy Home Cooperation, who ignited the couple’s passion for building an energy-efficient, cost-efficient home.
Beautifully hidden away, quiet and tranquil
“Our youngest daughter has allergy issues, so the concepts of mechanical ventilation and a warm, dry, resilient home really appealed to us,” says Sophie.
Damien explains more about the concept of a healthy home. “It’s all about designing and building with a focus on thermal comfort, visual comfort, acoustic comfort and indoor air quality, while ensuring long-term resilience and durability.”
In practical terms, that means starting with a superior resilient design and then building a home using outstanding construction techniques. In the case of Sophie and Mark’s home, this meant a fully insulated concrete slab with no thermal bridging, provision for underfloor heating, airtight Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) walls and ceilings, thermally broken aluminium windows, super insulation, and a Mechanical Heat Recovery whole-building Ventilation system (MHRV).
“Although the couple started with a larger house in mind, Sophie focused on the best thermally efficient structure she could afford. Because it’s expensive to establish a vineyard and orchard at the same time as building a house, the budget was definitely a factor,” says Damien.
Sophie agrees, saying, “When Mark and I were living in Melbourne, we had a two-bedroom flat that suited our two daughters and us just fine. There’s very little extra furniture we’ve had to buy, and it’s great to have a home that doesn’t require too much input after a hard day’s work on the vineyard.”
And actually, Sophie says, “It’s more than big enough for us and in hindsight, we could have made it smaller.”
QUALITY FRAMEWORK The window and door joinery from Insite Nelson is a quality accompaniment to the outstanding views.
The 142 square metre, three-bedroom home has the look and feel of a homely barn, and Stephan Meijer of Stephan Meijer Architecture is well versed in designing homes using passive solar and eco-design principles. Originally from The Netherlands, Stephan has worked with clients from all over the world and understands the need to design homes that blend into the local environment.
“The quality of homes in Europe is way better than here in New Zealand, and often, half the price,” says Stephan. “I like to be able to work with SIPs panels, for example, as they open up options for design and efficient use of space.”
Sophie and Mark chose to work with Stephan due to his experience designing with SIPs panels. Stephan recognises that every client is unique, and he enjoyed working with the various requirements of this couple. Having a straw bale constructed house himself and completing several energy-efficient home designs each year, he is very familiar with building with non-toxic materials and systems that create comfortable, healthy and sustainable living spaces.
“Sophie and Mark were looking for a modern, barn-style family home, with lots of natural light and plenty of storage and entertaining space. They love wood, natural materials, low energy use and sustainable living spaces,” says Stephan. “The challenge was always going to be the budget, but I believe I have catered for what they wanted.”
Also in the back of the couple’s mind was the possibility of repurposing the house when their children were older. “We wanted to future-proof the home with a design that could be easily converted into a guest house or extra family accommodation in future years.”
The home has certainly been designed to put people at ease, with relaxed spaces for the family to come together and for more ‘scaled up’ entertaining.
“I particularly love the kitchen,” says Sophie. “I’m a big cook and did a bit of design work myself on getting the kitchen just how I wanted it. I even sent Stephan the dimensions I wanted for my kitchen, down to the drawer contents and oven width!”
Mark’s favourite aspect of the home is its warmth and dryness. He says it’s noticeable on entering the property and he marvels at the lack of condensation on the windows.
“We had a minus two degrees frost when we moved in last October and we didn’t even realise,” states Sophie. “It frosted the whole vineyard, but we didn’t notice that while we were inside the home. You can tell the air is fresh and warm here and the temperature has never dropped below 17 degrees, even though we have no heating at the moment.”
Sophie and Mark were particularly impressed with their builders, who made choices in consultation with the couple and had a plethora of ideas on where details could be changed to keep within the budget.
“Standfast Builders are perfectionists,” smiles Sophie. “Everything lined up beautifully. I particularly like how the internal GIB and the external SIPs panels leave a negative detail feature.”
With 150 apple trees already planted and space for three times that amount, alongside 21,000 vines, the couple is looking forward to reaping their first harvest next year. That leaves them just a little bit of time to work on the landscaping of the property. Their plans include decking outside the main bedrooms, aluminium louvres for the patio and an outdoor entertainment area.
Relaxed spaces for the family to come together
There is plenty of interest in the Nelson Tasman area for this type of build. With the long sunshine hours and the rolling landscape, there is scope for sustainable healthy homes to flourish in this region. Sophie knows a lot of research is involved but certainly enjoys the growing sense of community around this type of build.
Sophie’s advice is to “do you homework and stick to your guns, as often you will know more than the so-called experts.”
Damien says that building professionals are not used to having clients that want a high specification thermal envelope. They are used to people wanting "shiny bling", rather than stuff that can’t be seen. He says a super reference document for healthy homes is the Healthy Home Design Guide.
This home highlights how it is possible to positively impact a community and the planet by creating a space that is sustainable while also enhancing health and wellbeing. By championing natural materials, designs for energy efficiency and all within a modest budget, the couple have built a truly outstanding family home.
INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT
ARCHITECTS
Stephan Meijer Architecture Ltd
021 260 6780
smal.co.nz
INSPIRATION
The Superhome Movement
superhome.co.nz
CONSULTANCY AND ENGINEERING
The Healthy Home Cooperation Ltd
027 348 1110
healthyhomedesignguide.co.nz
BUILDER
Standfast Homes
027 230 5287
WINDOW AND DOOR JOINERY
Insite Nelson
03 547 0562
insitenelson.co.nz
CAESARSTONE BENCHTOP
Granite Designworks
03 358 4830
granitedesignworks.co.nz
