Sunny Side Up

Designed to chase the light

There’s something quietly magical about finding calm at the end of the day, so this new build home chases the sun. Inside, wide glass doors and soaring gable windows in the open kitchen–living area drink in the northwestern light. Soft linen curtains cast a warm, golden haze, while earthy tones and sun-kissed finishes deepen the home’s balmy character. Above, cedar-lined ceilings fold down into a timber band that traces the tops of the walls, lifting the eye to those beautiful gables.

A rich, layered material palette

Throughout, colours throughout are rich and evocative: toasty reds, terracotta hues, mossy forest greens. Dark marbles ground the palette with a sense of the elemental. Timber reappears like a familiar refrain — oak flooring underfoot and also an oak stair screen, hand-crafted to gently sift sunlight as it moves through the day. With a family who lives through food, gatherings, and easy hospitality, the kitchen is a hardworking white steel, and the home’s layout encourages effortless flow out to the decks and garden.

Outdoor living, layer by layer

Outdoors, life unfolds in a series of inviting spaces — a barbecue nook, an outdoor fire, a grassy courtyard for children to roam. Overhead, a louvred roof, pergola structure, and perforated metal screens create layers of filtered light, shelter, and privacy. Meanwhile, a curving garden softens the edges, drawing the outdoor rooms together.

Abodo weatherboards wrap the exterior, painted grey on the main gable form and stained naturally on the more sheltered elevations. The contrast gives the home a quiet textural rhythm, distinguishing solid from screened, protected from exposed.

A new build in Westmere, Auckland

On a corner site in a lively Westmere neighbourhood on Auckland’s city fringe, this new home sits comfortably among both heritage villas and modern additions. Its contemporary gables pick up the rhythm of the street, stepping down the slope with a gentle confidence that allows it to feel both new and right at home.

In recognition of its design excellence

Sunny Side Up won a 2025 TIDA Award for Architect Designed Kitchen and a 2023 Best Awards Bronze Pin, and was a finalist at the World Architecture Festival in Singapore. Beyond these, the project also earned a 2024 Interior Residential Finalist placing and Highly Commended at the 2025 TIDA Homes Awards, with features running in both Abode and Homestyle magazines. 

If light, warmth and easy family living are what you’re after, we’d love to talk about your site. Get in touch to start the conversation, or browse more of our work for inspiration.