Design: Herbst Architects / Photography: Jackie Meiring

Located in the harbourside city of Tauranga, Papamoa Beach House pushes the boundaries of the 'typical' beach house aesthetic.

Herbst Architect's design for Papamoa Beach House is versatile, allowing the dwelling to be utilised as either a primary house or holiday home. The interior encapsulates the functionality of a home whilst exuding a relaxed and luxe ambience, transporting its residents into 'holiday mode'. The timber-clad exterior is a nod to the home's surroundings and a reminder of its beach-side location.

The interior of Papamoa Beach House is unique as it transcends the usual coastal theme of a light and bright colour palette. Instead, Herbst Architects opted to create an elegant interior with dark and moody undertones transforming the house into a haven for relaxation. The walls and ceiling are clad with dark stained cedar panels, while the interior is finished with dark trims and details adding to the rich aesthetic.

The lighting for Papamoa Beach House played an important role in helping achieve the overall aesthetic and ambience of the house. Following Herbst Architect's brief for functional and subtle lighting, adjustable, recessed and trimless fittings from the Delta Light range were utilised to ensure a flexible and minimal design. Modern fixtures were selected to match the interior decor and were finished in black to complement the dark tones with some fixtures featuring a pop of gold to add an element of luxe to the interior. All interior lighting selected features a colour temperature of 2700K to create a warm glow throughout the interior while also helping to bring out the detail in the natural wooden finishes.

"Papamoa was designed as a beach house which could be used as a primary dwelling or a holiday home. Along with the interiors, the lighting needed to romance being on holiday while providing highly functional task and more subtle lighting," say Herbst Architects. "Our approach tends to be wall sconces for ambient light, LED strips, pendants and desktop lamps with spots for task lighting. Inlite has a stable of generalist lighting that we consistently use to great effect."

Papamoa Beach House is the perfect combination of functionality and elegance balancing the everyday purpose of a home with the relaxed aesthetic and ambience of a holiday house.