Bell St | Wairarapa banner

A simple 1980’s weatherboard home, captured the imagination of the owners, who saw the house as the perfect opportunity to create a Scandinavian summer cottage inspired, weekend retreat.

An extension to include a master bedroom, wardrobe and ensuite was designed at the far end of the house. The feature corner window allows further light into the master bedroom and the hallway/reading nook.

A new plywood and concrete block kitchen, inspired by minimalist design, integrates into the feature block wall and firpleace hearth. Two simple but beautiful bathrooms feature custom designed plywood vanities to echo the kitchen. The existing bedrooms have been refereshed and the whole house refloored in light aged oak.

This project has just been completed and the result has been so fabulous that the owners have decided to ditch their city apartment in favour of this beautiful minimalist retreat.

 

“We met with James the very day we received the keys for our first home. Our dream was to create a “Scandinavian summer house” in the heart of Featherston! His first drawings absolutely floored us — he just understood our vision — and his ideas were absolutely spot on. Throughout the course of our renovation, we were consistently impressed with the level of creativity, care and professionalism James and the rest of the Mackit team approached our project.”

“The renovation went off without a hitch and we can’t remember once being stressed out as James was on top of everything — he’s responsive, communicative and a total perfectionist. The result is a very high-quality dream house for us that is a pleasure to live in.”

Clarion & Gavin Coughlan

Professionals used in
Bell St | Wairarapa

About the
Professional

James Mackie is an architectural designer, predominantly (but not exclusively) servicing the Wellington/Wairarapa region out of his busy Greytown design office. He founded his company Mackit Architecture in 2008, with a goal to fill the niche for bespoke modern homes that can be built efficiently and precisely. 

Being a registered designer with Architectural Designers New Zealand and a Licensed Building Practitioner in both design and carpentry, James has a unique edge when it comes to designing homes for discerning clients. Through the application of both his building and design knowledge, he can bridge the gap between complex high-level design and the practical reality of its construction. 


Inspired by the effect the built environment has on one’s self, James loves opportunities to enrich existence by creating high quality, beautifully designed spaces. Crucially, James’ incredible building knowledge also means that his plans are always expertly detailed and thought out – essentially he has already built the house in his head during the design process.