Sponsored: Contemporary, comfortable and stylish living

Words: Adrienne Matthews | Photos: Jared Buckley

Owners of design and build company AP Homes, Andrew and Michelle Pope, are receiving excellent feedback from those who have visited their latest show home at 25 Wai Iti Avenue, Blenheim. “The last show home we designed and built was in a mid-century style, and this time we wanted to do a contemporary build,” says Andrew who, with 35 years of building experience behind him, can create any style clients ask for.

The street appeal is striking with its inky black Acoya timber cladding, which is highly sustainable, durable and, most appealingly, low maintenance. The chimney to the right of the entrance forms a stylish contrast with its same-colour plaster coating.

AP Home’s in-house designers have come up with a distinctive and very enticing front entrance that provides plenty of room for protection from the weather. Cleverly positioned strip LED lighting highlights the strong roof angle and stretches up to the top of the gable, adding to the welcoming feel.

At 237sqm the home is built atop the New Zealand designed RibRaft® pod floor system, an innovative way of providing excellent insulation and seismic strength with the added advantage of reducing labour build time and cost.

The inclusion of a fully ducted heat pump climate control system, where each room can be any temperature desired, is ideal for those who have different requirements for sleeping and adds to the energy efficiency of the home. Being north-facing and with skylights, the house gets plenty of sun and is light and bright at any time of the year.

The open plan living, dining, and kitchen areas offer an abundance of space for families to gather and entertain. The window seat that doubles as part of a table seating area allows for a more spacious feel overall while providing plenty of comfort for relaxing at any time of the day or night and also as a space where children can do their homework or projects. A dining area included behind the main lounge area provides a more formal place to sit for meals.

The open kitchen and walk-in pantry area, designed by Michelle and constructed by Bay’s Joinery, comes with abundant storage and the addition of a butler’s sink in the pantry is an extremely useful addition.

The choice of the Melteca Oiled Legno Woodgrain as a feature around the oven and also a backdrop to the central kitchen island is inspired, provides a warm, glowing contrast to the Melteca Ash White in the rest of the space.

The placement of an LED lighting strip on the underside of the island highlights this. The Caesarstone bench tops are carried up the wall as a splashback behind the stove, providing uniformity to the seamless lines of the kitchen.

Master of the interior design side of the business, Michelle’s input is everywhere, and her choice of mottled green backdrop shower tiles offers a calm and refreshing vibe. The built-in shelf that extends the width of the shower back is a simple idea and yet so effective, being the perfect storage solution for everyone’s various shower products while being easy to keep clean.

The flooring in the main living areas of the house is Pergo Isla Oak Laminate. Inspired by Scandinavian design, it has a very natural looking wood finish and is extremely hard-wearing. Laid on a foam compound, it is essentially a floating floor that expands and contracts according to the temperature and is beautifully comfortable to walk on.

Andrew was keen to include a space for wine storage and drew up plans that were then constructed and powder coated by local firm Classic Gates. “I like to think outside the box,” he says. “It’s a quirky addition which is receiving a lot of positive comment.” Andrew and Michelle love seeing their designs for clients come to fruition. “We are a little different in our approach in that we find out from the owner exactly what their budget is right at the start and design around it with their input,” explains Andrew.

“That way there are never any nasty surprises later on, and clients can be sure right from the beginning what their finished home will look like and all the
features it will include.”