- 7 hours ago
Grand Designs NZ S10E03 Huntsbury Strawbale
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00:01One day, along came a big bad wolf.
00:05Little pig, little pig, let me in, snarled the wolf.
00:09Not by the hairs on my chinny-chin-chin, cried the first little pig.
00:13Well, I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in, growled the wolf.
00:21Oh dear, do we think it's a good idea to build a house out of straw?
00:26No!
00:28Well, this might be a fairy tale, but actually in real life,
00:32people have been building straw houses for a very long time.
00:35In fact, they're still doing it today.
00:36The only thing is, it's quite hard work.
00:41And they've got to deal with people huffing and puffing about it.
00:44But they say their houses are safe and strong, warm and dry.
00:50So actually, the first little piggy might have had it right all along.
00:54Hmm, it's just a shame about those wolves.
00:56Oh my goodness.
00:57Oh my goodness.
01:16Oh my goodness!
01:25I think that might be it. That's where we're going to go climbing.
01:29I am?
01:29Yeah, what do you think of the spot?
01:31For Elizabeth and Everett Norris, the natural environment is the big attraction.
01:38We're not climbing the scaffold anymore. This is the real deal.
01:42Everett, originally from Hamilton, is a builder with his own company.
01:48My hobbies are building, ballgames and hiking in that order.
01:52But in recent years, it's mainly been building, building, building.
01:56Saving for the dream house.
02:01It's those long legs and arms. I can't keep up with them.
02:06Christchurch-born Elizabeth is a graduate architect working in an architect's office
02:10on her way to getting fully registered.
02:13But she also has a bigger vision.
02:16I didn't pursue architecture immediately.
02:19I was obsessed with stopping climate change, which I still am,
02:22but I was doing it in a different way, more with tree planting.
02:25And then I realised that I could do architecture
02:28and that natural building actually was one of the best ways
02:32to build better for the environment.
02:35I work for Design and Make Architects
02:38and I'm a committee member for the Earth Building Association.
02:40In fact, Elizabeth and Everett have a passion for natural building
02:46and earth-friendly houses.
02:49We met at a natural building conference.
02:52So that's how we met.
02:53Which I think is quite romantic.
02:55We knew that actually we had the same visions and ideas
02:58and, you know, that maybe we should be together.
03:02They're now planning what they hope will be their family home
03:05on a Huntsbury Hills section Elizabeth and her mother bought in 2017.
03:11I had years and years of thinking about what I was going to build on it.
03:16It's going to become our house and it's, you know,
03:20the one that we want to live in for a long time.
03:22But it's also important because it's making me become an architect someday
03:26and that this is going to be one of my projects that I use towards my registration.
03:31While Elizabeth is interested in architectural aesthetics and visual appeal,
03:36Everett has a much more straightforward approach to building.
03:40If left to my own devices, I would make it simple.
03:44When I see complexity, it's, it's like, like ugly.
03:50That's a shame. That's wasteful.
03:52This is probably our largest point of conflict is...
03:55But that, but where the conflict is, that's where the magic is.
03:59Because that's where we can learn from each other and make a better solution.
04:09We'll just have to wait to see on that.
04:12Right now, there's a section on a hillside
04:15and a young couple full of hopes and dreams.
04:20G'day.
04:21Hey, Tom.
04:22How are you?
04:22Very good.
04:23Everett.
04:24Pleasure to meet you, Tom.
04:25You too.
04:26So this is it.
04:27This is you.
04:28This is our property.
04:29I've just walked by a building, but that's not it, is it?
04:32There's a hole in the ground here.
04:34Yeah, this is where we're going to build our house and this is our workshop.
04:37Okay.
04:38And is this a clue?
04:40Yep.
04:40We're going to build a straw bale passive house.
04:42A passive and a straw bale house.
04:45Yes.
04:46Well, that's exciting.
04:46Yeah.
04:51The couple's workshop garage is not straw bale constructed or passive house certified, but
04:57it has been built by Everett from recycled timber with a kind of whimsical quality I think
05:03someone like Peter Jackson would enjoy.
05:06There's a bit of Hobbit in it, right?
05:10I am Fulshire.
05:12Fulshire.
05:12Yeah.
05:13The rustic look is really nice for the garage, but for the house I'd like it to be more slick
05:17and more architectural.
05:18Right.
05:18So you're going to be able to bring to bear some of that fine architectural thinking.
05:23And Everett's going to be resisting all the way.
05:27Yeah.
05:28Brilliant.
05:30Well, let's see.
05:33Alongside the Fulshire garage, Elizabeth and Everett's house sits out of the ground on a timber base.
05:39The entry hall opens to a living and dining room with wool insulated earthen flooring
05:44and a load-bearing timber post and beam structure packed with tightly compressed straw bales.
05:50Continue into the kitchen featuring recycled Rimu cabinetry, parquet flooring and a walk-in pantry.
05:57All the windows are triple glazed and German made, with a large window seat in the lounge
06:03taking in the western views while a timber deck runs along the northern side.
06:08At the back of the ground floor, there's a guest bedroom and bathroom.
06:12The straw walls are thickly plastered with softly curving corners, but the central stair wall braces the building
06:18and so will be timber clad with vertical battens.
06:22Upstairs, there's laundry space and a machine room for the passive house ventilation system.
06:28Then back down the hallway to the bathroom with private deck and onto two small bedrooms.
06:33The king-size master bedroom features views across the city and Canterbury Plains, and a glass-fronted deck alongside.
06:42The skillion-style roof is steel-clad with solar panels on the north.
06:47The exterior walls will be lime plastered, protecting the straw in a weather-resistant and breathable natural finish.
06:54Elizabeth and Everett are fully committed to building a low-energy house using locally sourced renewable materials and minimising construction
07:03waste.
07:04A home truly aligned to their earthy version of sustainable living.
07:11All right, so we've got Everett. You're the main builder.
07:14You're going to have some lackeys, maybe some expert lackeys coming in to help as well, which costs money.
07:19So if you're free, your design input is free.
07:23Yeah.
07:24That's good.
07:24And I can also build.
07:26Great.
07:27She's pretty good.
07:27She's really good on the tools.
07:28You'd be surprised.
07:29You're all in.
07:30Yeah.
07:31Consenting tricky for a straw barrel house in New Zealand?
07:34Yeah, it probably took twice as long to get the consent.
07:37600 pages of studies of all sorts of things from all over the world.
07:41And what was the cost of the section?
07:44228,000.
07:45228.
07:46Yeah.
07:46How much do you have for the house?
07:48So we've got 500,000 for the house, including borrowing money.
07:53And we've got a buffer of about 30,000 to 40,000.
07:57So what happens if you go over that 500,000 and the little 30,000 buffer?
08:03Yeah, the other builders, they'll be gone.
08:05We won't have anything to pay them.
08:08Yeah, I mean, I've got a few family members that we might be able to do some borrowing off.
08:12Do they know?
08:14Yeah, we have actually talked to a few of them,
08:17and we think we've got a backup plan.
08:19Okay.
08:20So if everything goes to plan, I reckon a year and a half.
08:24And then we've got this extra sort of six-month buffer of time.
08:28So two years is what we expect it will actually be.
08:33Is there a pressing need to have a finish line?
08:36Yeah, we'd like to have a family.
08:38Well, the best reason.
08:40Yeah, yeah.
08:41So we don't want to, you know, delay forever for that.
08:43Sure.
08:43Yeah.
08:44Better get building.
08:45Yeah, we'd better get building.
08:52I think these two are going to be great fun to watch.
08:55Building in an alternative way, using pretty much Stone Age materials in a modern setting.
09:01But while Elizabeth and Everett embrace the environmental benefits of using straw for housing, how practical is it today?
09:14People have built out of loosely packed straw clad with materials like earth, manure and timber for thousands of years.
09:22However, these buildings had issues.
09:25They burned down.
09:26They got infested with vermin.
09:28They rotted and simply didn't last.
09:31But that all changed in the late 19th century with the invention of these rather brilliant mechanical baling machines, which
09:38gave us ready-made neat building blocks.
09:45These new machine baled straw houses were much stronger, warmer, faster to build and lasted longer too, if properly built
09:53and maintained.
09:56As a raw material, it's very cheap.
09:58And when we bind it together, it's a great insulator.
10:02High thermal properties.
10:04A great alternative to conventional building products, you might say.
10:08But a lot of it still goes to waste.
10:11So given the abundant supply, what's stopping us building more straw bale houses today?
10:17The challenge now is to get straw bale construction accepted as a standalone solution in the building code.
10:24But until then, clever people like Lizzie and Everett, I think, are going to prove that you can build straw
10:30houses well.
10:31And there's a good chance that they will become important in this country's housing future.
10:46In the couple of weeks after my visit to Huntsbury Hill, there's been plenty of action on site, with work
10:52for the extensive foundations well underway.
10:55When the concrete traps come up, they need to reverse down the lane.
11:00This morning, the concrete's being poured for the foundations.
11:03And while Elizabeth has worked on building sites before as Everett's apprentice, today she's on traffic management.
11:11Even stop the traffic if you have to.
11:13Yeah.
11:13So they don't turn around the corner and be surprised by a concrete trap.
11:18OK. Yeah.
11:20I'm in the shade, so...
11:21There's nothing. It's a good spot, actually.
11:22Don't fall in a hole.
11:23Love you.
11:27Straw bale houses are very rare in Christchurch.
11:30And gaining building consent here was a long and expensive process.
11:36But it wasn't just the straw causing issues. It was the land itself and its history.
11:43This was the so-called Hill of Hope, where tuberculosis patients were cared for in the Kashmir Sanatorium and Coronation
11:51Hospital for many years.
11:52There was a lot of building and demolition up and down the steep slopes on this light, silty soil.
11:58And by the 1990s, the hill was largely covered with housing.
12:04But many of the homes were damaged or destroyed in the landslides triggered by the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
12:10And that led to the area being designated a mass movement zone, where new builds need serious foundations.
12:22So, yeah, we've got our house piles, which are three metres down into the ground.
12:28A lot of concrete, actually. A lot more than we thought.
12:31But we just want to make sure that this house does not go anywhere.
12:36But while so much is going into making this house unshakable, I'm wondering about the couple's working relationship.
12:44Elizabeth's an aspiring architect with an eye for interesting design.
12:47Everett's a builder with a passion for simplicity.
12:51I'm not sure where the common ground is, or if the ground is, in fact, already shaky.
13:09It's the weekend before Christmas, but no prospect of summer holidays here at Elizabeth and Everett Norris's straw bale house
13:16in Christchurch.
13:20Elizabeth's already worked a full week in the architect's office, and now she's backing up on the tools here.
13:26You sure? You saw it slip over? Yeah.
13:28The more hours I can put on the building site, the better.
13:30But I've also got to keep up my regular day job as well.
13:34So, today's Saturday, and I'm here, and I'm here tomorrow as well.
13:40The designer also doesn't hesitate giving the builder the benefit of her opinion.
13:47So, what I would do is, for the shower part that's here, I would just make all of them the
13:52240mm.
13:53And as soon as we're away from the shower, we go up as we have done.
13:56This is not quite the way Everett thought it was going to work.
14:01Yeah.
14:01Yeah.
14:02Yeah.
14:03Normally, I don't get so much talk back from the apprentices.
14:07So, there's a lot more like, no, I disagree.
14:10Well, I have the builder here.
14:13I'm going to cut that off.
14:14What was meant to happen was, Elizabeth would say what we were going to do, and I could say how
14:22we were going to do it.
14:23But now we're here, there's a bit more crossover than we expected, and it's not so clear lines.
14:35During the build, the couple are staying with Elizabeth's mum, Roz, who shares their environmental values while recognising their individuality
14:43and differences.
14:45I have heard a couple of arguments.
14:48Elizabeth is very creative and very determined.
14:51And Everett, he's quite stubborn.
14:54But yeah, anyway, they'll work it out.
14:56They're working it out just fine.
14:57It'll be good.
14:58Water and mint.
14:59Yeah, I feel like I'm being served like a king.
15:02Elizabeth?
15:02That's because you've been working hard all day, so you can be a king if you want to be.
15:06And if you want to realize, I've got a whole pocket.
15:09Roz is a calming influence, encouraging Elizabeth and Everett to think about their commitment to natural building and how they're
15:17putting it into practice.
15:19Perfect.
15:19Another day.
15:20We're going to miss your cooking when we're living alone up on the hill.
15:23I'm sure I'll be running up and down the hill all the time, coming up to say hello.
15:28Deliver it on the site, Everett, you think?
15:30Yeah, yeah, yes, please.
15:31Roz's organic homegrown meal is a real tonic after a sometimes stressful day on site.
15:38Here, toast to you guys.
15:41Cheers.
15:41Well done.
15:44All on track.
15:45A dream is going to come true.
15:47Mm-hmm.
15:55By March, with the wall framing going up, Elizabeth can stand and look out from the bones of her house.
16:03I love the little church steeple in the distance, and there's this big tree that's nearby it, and it's really
16:08pretty.
16:08And then it just slopes away into the plains.
16:11One thing Elizabeth's really happy with is a design change she made to the front of the house, angling a
16:17wall to make the most of the outlook.
16:20The house is basically a square, and then we've got this random 30 degree angle on one side.
16:28And I'm so glad that I pushed for it, because it is really capturing the best view on the whole
16:33property.
16:34And so we only really had one opportunity to get that amazing view.
16:38However, that change and the added complexity wasn't appreciated by everyone.
16:47Everett grumbled every day when he was doing this angle, just because of the angles of the floor joists and
16:53the connections and everything.
16:55And every day he's like, why, why, why?
16:57But, you know, if I didn't have that angle, then we would just be looking at the hills or looking
17:02at the neighbours, but we wouldn't see the view.
17:04And so it would just be such a lost opportunity.
17:06And then finally we put up the studs and we have the opening and there's the view.
17:12And I was like, there you go Everett, and he agrees, of course, you know, it's worth it.
17:17But I have to say that I've got a lot to learn from him too.
17:20So, you know, he'll have some battles that he wins as well.
17:24Right now on site, though, there's nothing going on at all.
17:31To honour a previous building commitment and bring in some much needed cash, Everett's living in Methuen, about a hundred
17:38kilometres south of Christchurch, working on another straw bale house.
17:42This one's a lot further along and Everett's onto the plaster cladding.
17:47But there's some critical work to do on his own house and he needs this job to be done and
17:53dusted.
17:55The big downside of being here is we've lost the summer.
18:00So I've got to get the roof on and winter's getting closer by the day.
18:13So I've been seven days a week working here and the moment it's over, the next day I'll be on
18:19my site working on my house.
18:21And it's like I have to finish it by the end of next year. I have to.
18:25Because every week sooner you finish is another week you get its use. It's worth so much.
18:35A bonus here, though, is the inspiration and encouragement Everett's taking from how this home has been designed and put
18:42together.
18:42He's certainly impressed.
18:48This is going to be a really warm, comfortable house. It's not too big. It's quite simple.
18:54But then they've made it just beautiful. So it's like, that's my favourite. Like, simple but beautiful.
19:06And it may well be that this enforced separation has its upsides.
19:11Certainly the break will add cash to the coffers, but it might be even more valuable than that.
19:17I think it definitely does strengthen the relationship to have a little bit of time apart.
19:21He's just so stressed or I'm so stressed.
19:25So, yeah, I mean, I'm really looking forward to having the house and having this.
19:30I love the process of building, but I am looking more forward to just having the house and having our
19:36normal relationship again.
19:49It's been a while since I visited Lizzie and Everett, and I'm really keen to see progress.
19:55Now, you may wonder why I'm on a bike. Today is Earth Day, and so I thought I would honour
20:03their philosophy by arriving on carbon neutral transport.
20:10I see the roof's not on yet, and now he's back from the methane job.
20:14That will be Everett's big focus so he can get the straw bales in.
20:18Hey! How are you? Welcome.
20:21I'm good. Thank you. I'm going to park up.
20:24It's great to get up to the top floor and take in the view that Elizabeth's design makes the most
20:29of.
20:33So this feels really generous, doesn't it, for a man who lived in a tiny house. And what will this
20:38be? Will you have an en suite?
20:40Um, not yet. Not while Everett lives here, apparently.
20:44No? No. Just a provision for it in the future.
20:47Clearly, I've hit a nerve here. Elizabeth wants an en suite, but Everett has dug his toes in, and this
20:52time, he's won.
20:53I just think that everything you add to your house, you have to decide, is this going to actually add
21:00happiness?
21:01And if it doesn't, I think it's just an obstacle.
21:04And Lizzie?
21:04That's fine. I just wanted to make sure there was at least one bathroom on each floor, so that's what
21:10we've got.
21:11The other thing I didn't expect to see was the pink timber. Preserved timber.
21:15It was a big battle for us to get untreated timber. We were just so exhausted by the time we
21:23got in the house. We were trying to do no treated timbers.
21:26I think we had maca carpa, we had Douglas fir, and then we realised the cost of it, so hence
21:33why we've just gone with the Pinus Radiata H1.2.
21:36Yeah. So you kind of have to pick your battles.
21:40That's what we're doing.
21:40You're targeting lots of different, really worthy things that you believe in, but actually there's some practicality in there to
21:47actually get the building built.
21:54Elizabeth and Everett are trying their best to build an earth-friendly home inspired by centuries-old techniques within the
22:02expensive and highly regulated 21st century construction industry.
22:09It's a complicated scenario, including growing concern about the environmental cost of modern building.
22:17Over 40% of New Zealand's landfill waste comes from the construction industry, and that adds up to millions of
22:24tons.
22:26The materials Lizzie and Everett are using, straw, clay-based plaster, can be combined back into the earth in a
22:34circular sustainable model.
22:37Now, many of the modern building materials don't have that benefit, and are potentially destined for landfill.
22:46But there's always context. For decades, New Zealand struggled with cold, damp homes that simply didn't last, and the focus
22:54shifted to using chemically treated timber to resist rot.
22:57And while that solves some issues, it may have created others.
23:05Many treated timbers, varnishes and paints contain chemicals that can emit off-gassing into our internal environments, and potentially creating
23:14long-term health risks.
23:17On the other hand, in a system already struggling to deliver affordable, efficient housing, minimising or removing chemicals altogether may
23:26seem impractical.
23:28There's certainly a hot debate to be had on these complex and controversial issues.
23:33I mean, the mind boggles.
23:35Just being here, you can really appreciate why Lizzie and Everett are so committed to their cause, and feel that
23:42what they're doing is of critical importance.
23:49September, and a fine Christchurch morning. No rain in the forecast, and just as well.
23:58Four hundred straw bales have arrived on site, and they all have to go into the framing to form the
24:05walls today.
24:07So I pull it as tight as I can, and then pull it down, that side.
24:13I'm a novice here, but the natural building community has turned out in force, and the couple are very grateful.
24:22Thank you again for coming, and, you know, helping today.
24:26This is, um, something that Lizzie and I have wanted for a long time.
24:32Like, um, we fell in love when we were kids.
24:36While we were young.
24:36We didn't know.
24:40Wedding speech.
24:42No, not us.
24:44I meet you in my twenties.
24:45Yeah, yeah, no.
24:48And, so, I meant, I meant with straw bales, with straw bales building.
24:53But enough laughs at Everett's expense.
24:56He's got a careful plan worked out for the straw bale installation, and everyone needs to jump to it.
25:07You certainly find out who your friends are on days like this.
25:11We can probably fit two bales and a piece.
25:14There's a fair bit of prep work involved, and it's not as straightforward as I thought it would be.
25:20Every bale has to be tied and uniformly compressed and cajoled into position.
25:25I'll try one more time.
25:30But before too long, everyone seems to get the hang of it.
25:35Too weird.
25:37Everett keeps a close eye on quality control.
25:40There's a lot at stake here, and every bale counts.
25:49We did it!
25:56Even bales in difficult positions are no match for Everett's can-do Kiwi ingenuity.
26:03Well, this is new to me.
26:05Carjacks, a driver's strots, but pretty effective.
26:10Yeah, I guess you have to be inventive when you're building in an alternative way.
26:16Three, two, one.
26:17This is awesome outside.
26:21Someone set me up.
26:23It feels very different with the walls and with the straws, and you can start to feel what the house
26:28is actually like now.
26:29It's now Papa Strawberry House.
26:34What we're seeing today in equal parts is Everett's brilliance and madness as this house comes together quite quickly, really.
26:44But the most impressive thing of all is that there's a whole community here building with Everett and Lizzie.
26:50And you don't see that very often.
26:53It's really quite exciting.
26:57With the bales in, the house is now set in straw, and interior work can step up.
27:04Time for Elizabeth then to assert her architectural vision, and Everett to accept it.
27:10Or not. Keeping them both happy will be a test, but for now at least, it's all smiles.
27:33It's early November on Huntsbury Hill, and Everett has covered the straw bales with a clay and fibre-based plaster
27:39mix to protect them from the weather, while the rest of the build continues.
27:43The walls will have a finishing plaster layer added later on.
27:49Inside, some interior walls will be plastered, while others will feature recycled timber, and some have yet to be built
27:57as Everett and Elizabeth work out their final floor plan.
28:02Oh, this is cool, Lizzie.
28:04It feels really cocooning and quiet, doesn't it?
28:08So it's an ideal time for Elizabeth's employer and mentor, Delia, to visit.
28:15I'm wondering about whether to kind of box that in, and bring the height down, and then as you enter
28:20into the space, it all opens up.
28:21Or, I just keep this long height all the way through.
28:26Yeah, I mean, to me, this is where, like, most of the architecture is internally, is like the volume of
28:31the space, and like the power of these, kind of how these forms relate.
28:34So, I think if you are going to close that off, it does need to be something that's really strong.
28:38Don't sort of close it off and make conventional little pokey rooms out of it, because I don't think you
28:41need to.
28:42OK.
28:44So much of my attention was about making sensible spaces, and there hasn't been any time for creativity.
28:52And now I feel like this is the moment, and I've got to capture it, and if I don't, like,
28:57I'm going to miss it, and it's just going to be, I don't know, ordinary.
29:02And if I just carry on with my busy life, just focusing on earning money to pay for the building,
29:06I'm going to miss this opportunity.
29:09There's a lot going on here, a forever family home, a statement from a budding architect, and the big picture
29:17the couple passionately believe in.
29:20I think it's a pretty ambitious project to embark upon, and so we've all kind of just sort of gone
29:25all in with them to kind of make it happen.
29:28So it's their build, but it also feels like it's a community build as well for our kind of earth
29:32building community.
29:33So I'm very proud of her, actually. I think she's done a great job.
29:41A few weeks later, and Elizabeth and Everett are hosting delegates from the Earth Building Association of New Zealand's annual
29:47conference, the same event where they met several years ago.
29:52Thank you for being interested enough to come and see my house. We've always wanted to do something like this.
30:00And while the creativity Elizabeth wants to bring to the build is not on show yet, Everett couldn't be more
30:08excited about what's here already.
30:11I love it. I kind of boil Elizabeth to tears, because, you know, what I want to talk about at
30:17night is, you know, building physics, building science, housing, how we can build better, and to find other people like
30:23me, and we can just geek about, you know, spreadsheets and, you know, climate models and carbon footprints. I love
30:29it.
30:29If you think now there's a kitchen here, dining room.
30:33For the visitors, it's a chance to see theory turned into practice, and for the couple to stress the importance
30:40of forward planning when building a truly sustainable home.
30:44A lot of buildings, they're taken down, they're renovated to the extreme or with a huge expense to make them
30:51fit our modern day lifestyle.
30:54Can we maximise the different uses of this building so that this building could last for generations and generations and
31:02not have to be taken down?
31:04I do wonder, though, if the couple are preaching to the converted.
31:09If straw bale houses have any chance of moving into the mainstream, it will be down to people like Elizabeth
31:15injecting aesthetic qualities and design thinking to create broader appeal.
31:28It's two months since my last visit, so I thought I'd swing by to site for a catch-up. Well,
31:34that was a mistake.
31:36Just a couple hanging out, digging poo.
31:41Yeah, and then splattering on the house.
31:43Yeah.
31:43I've brought my glad rags ready to come and help.
31:46Nice.
31:47Oh.
31:48For the walls, Everett has devised a specific plaster mix of clay, sand, straw, hemp, and cow manure.
31:57Why are you touching it?
31:57Oh, God!
31:58You hit it!
31:59Oh, no!
32:05The raw materials are ground together and mixed with water to create the viscosity and consistency Everett wants.
32:17What I'm trying to do is get as much fibre in it as possible and still be able to pump
32:22it because the fibre makes it more flexible and makes it stronger and less likely to crack.
32:28And so to work. Homemade plaster.
32:33Quite smelly.
32:36Once the perfect mix is achieved, it gets blasted onto the walls with this sprayer.
32:42There's a bit to think about here. There's a bit of coordination.
32:45I'm going to make a mess, aren't I?
32:47Since the couple's budget for extra labour has now run out, I'm happy to step in.
32:54But...
32:55Oh! That jump.
32:58I think we go for it.
33:08To achieve consistent coverage requires a skilled applicator, not an enthusiastic amateur.
33:16You got it.
33:16I'm really worried that I'm getting this wrong.
33:20But it's actually really good fun.
33:27Fortunately, Everett comes along after me to sort it all out, so I can get an update on Elizabeth's design
33:33journey.
33:36Hello.
33:37Oh, hello.
33:38Dust myself off a bit.
33:41Typically, at this stage in a conventional build, the interior design decisions would be around what paint or wallpaper to
33:47use.
33:47Or tiles versus timber.
33:50But here, Elizabeth is mixing colour into clay plaster.
33:56There's a sort of artist kit here, isn't there?
33:58You've got a few different materials, some pigments.
34:01Mm-hmm.
34:02We may find that we really like just the natural, local plaster.
34:06But these pigments, they just bring a bit of, like, you know, life and flavour to the room.
34:11You can see I've got these burnt brown, orange, red colours.
34:17We've got ochres, greens.
34:19Yeah.
34:22I'll have to choose sort of the theme.
34:24Like, downstairs might have those warm, rich colours, because it's a bit darker down there.
34:28Upstairs, I'm thinking maybe more beach colours.
34:31So you're going to create some real atmospheres.
34:33Different feelings in each room, perhaps.
34:35Yeah.
34:35The focus is on those architectural decisions still to make.
34:39There are a few of those, but also all of those finishing decisions.
34:42I'm actually feeling a little scared.
34:44Right, a bit of pressure.
34:45Yeah, a bit of pressure.
34:47This is where you prove yourself as a house designer.
34:50That's right.
34:50I hope I make it super, super nice so I don't want to leave.
34:53Sure.
35:00Yet again, being here has proven to be a fully immersive experience.
35:05But, peer beyond the earth, cow dung, straw.
35:10And there's a critical part that we haven't seen yet.
35:13And that's the transformation of this into the architectural experience,
35:17the visual treat that it so deserves to be.
35:31I'm on the scenic back route to Lizzie and Everett's self-built home over the Port Hills.
35:36And I guess the thing about it being self-built is that I can't imagine a finished house.
35:41It's been such an immersive, all-encompassing process that my vision of Everett is covered in straw and mud and
35:50natural materials.
35:52So what will we find? I don't know.
35:55In fact, maybe a part of me doesn't want it to end.
36:01But that's a sentiment Everett and Elizabeth will hardly agree with.
36:05They've put their hearts and soul into the build.
36:08And it's not over yet.
36:10The landscaping, for instance, is still to be done.
36:13But it's inside the house that I'm hoping their hard work has been rewarded.
36:18Well, I like this.
36:20Corten cladding panels, hand-painted with birds and straw, of course.
36:25And there's a real sculptural quality to this house.
36:28A little gentle angle and curved window reveals.
36:32It really is a house that welcomes you in.
36:34Oh, and an open front door.
36:39Oh, look at this. This is Lizzie's engravings, I guess.
36:43This beautiful pigment carved into the wall.
36:47Hello. Hey.
36:48Oh, hello.
36:49How are you? Yeah.
36:50You know, I've never seen you two dressed like this quite.
36:53You're always in work mode, up to your ears in something.
36:55Rare occurrence.
36:57Right, right.
36:58And it's gorgeous.
37:07It's such a lovely feeling here.
37:08And everywhere is full of really individual touches.
37:13This light.
37:14What am I looking at? What is that?
37:16Oh, that's the ginkgo leaf and berry.
37:18It's recessed into the ceiling.
37:20Very nice. And another one here, look, more engraving on the wall.
37:24Yeah, typical New Zealand scenery, mountains, ocean.
37:28And also there's a lot of diagonal work here, which I look at it and I just think of over
37:33it cutting angles everywhere.
37:35It was seconds timber, so I was using up all the short pieces.
37:39Ah, so you did have the luxury of the long playing.
37:41So you improvise and, yeah, so much more characterful for it.
37:49The creativity, originality, the textures, the colours could all be overwhelming, but somehow they're not.
37:57Even in the smallest room, like the bathroom downstairs.
38:04It's so nice to be surrounded by earthy, natural materials that are sort of drawn to them.
38:10It has an olive oil soap finish over the lime plaster.
38:13Yeah, so it smells of olive.
38:16Yeah.
38:19Building an environmentally sustainable house on a very tight budget has taken imagination and innovation.
38:29This is our bedroom.
38:31Yeah.
38:32Oh, lots of different materials going on.
38:34And above me, soft material on the ceiling.
38:38It's actually leftover weed mat from the garden.
38:40And we had run out of the nice ceiling, so we thought we'd put it on the ceiling.
38:46And actually we quite like it.
38:47So this house, it's not just about recycling materials.
38:50You're thinking of innovative ways to use materials in a different way, in a different purpose.
38:54There's a lot of trying something out, and if Elizabeth doesn't like it, try something else.
38:59Well, there's the key.
39:00Yeah. Thank you.
39:06I'm mentally preparing myself for more brave experimentation.
39:11And not just the textures, colours and materials, but the different sculptural forms possible in a plaster lined straw house
39:18like this.
39:19Little niche here and more curves.
39:22There's so much happening here.
39:24You might think too much, but it all works together beautifully.
39:31So this is Creative Central, your office.
39:34Yeah, that's right.
39:35So you've got oak floorboards on the ceiling.
39:38Yeah.
39:39Well, you know, some people build quite large houses and they have lots of leftovers, and so we buy the
39:44leftovers.
39:45Oh, I see.
39:46Slightly different tints on the ceilings and floors in each room.
39:49Yeah, it's a really restful space.
39:52There's a guest bedroom upstairs, but no weed mat wall this time.
39:56And finally, at the front, the upstairs lounge I'm really looking forward to seeing.
40:04Oh, this is a treat.
40:06What a great view.
40:11How would you describe the shape of this room?
40:14Oh, it's organic, I suppose.
40:16Yeah.
40:16Yeah.
40:17This is how I would have liked all the rooms, but it's a lot easier to build rectangular spaces.
40:25The deal I had with Elizabeth was she could have whatever curves she wanted as long as they weren't structural.
40:31So I built them like normal rafters, but then bent battens underneath and clicked the ceiling in.
40:37I'm really glad you did them.
40:38This is so much more satisfying.
40:55I have to say, you two, I'm supremely comfortable in your lovely house.
41:00How do you feel?
41:01It's so much better than I imagined.
41:04I was so heads down, focused on trying to build the thing.
41:07And to come back, it's so much better than I expected.
41:11We didn't realise it was going to be this good.
41:14It was just so much hard work that we were just sort of tired and, you know, he's got a
41:17sore knee.
41:20You're slightly broken.
41:21Slightly broken.
41:22Yeah.
41:22So then for the house to actually just turn out really well, it's such a relief.
41:27It is my favourite house.
41:29Anywhere.
41:30Of any house I've seen.
41:32Wow.
41:32The best house in the world.
41:34To me.
41:35Well, yeah.
41:37No, no, no.
41:38And it shouldn't be for everyone.
41:39It should just be for us.
41:40Yeah.
41:46So, money.
41:48Where were you with your budget?
41:50The original budget was 540,000.
41:53Did you hit 540?
41:55No.
41:56So we went over by 140,000.
41:59And a large proportion of that was paying for other builders.
42:03And I think, you know, in the future if we ever built anything again or if we were advising other
42:08people, we would say always budget for more labour because it's just really hard on your own.
42:13Yeah.
42:14Yeah.
42:15Yeah.
42:15You try to take it all on by yourself, but it can be hard.
42:25So adding those two together, 540,000 and 140,000, you get 680,000.
42:31And then you look at this house, 680 is still incredible.
42:35Yeah, we worked out that it's about a value of about 380,000 that we have put into it ourselves.
42:42Goodness.
42:43Yeah.
42:43Yeah.
42:43And I guess you could also include all the friends and other helpers that we've had.
42:47It's really nice to think we've done this, we've set ourselves up, and now we can move on to the
42:52next phase in our lives.
42:53Ideal for a family.
42:55So that's the next step.
42:56And isn't that a lovely thing to think about?
42:58Yeah.
42:59And for Everett to participate in things that are going on in the city again, he's just been locked in
43:04here for two years.
43:05Yes.
43:06You can release the Everett.
43:09I go out and people are like, oh, where's your husband?
43:12And two years later they're still asking the same question.
43:15You're still married.
43:21What I really enjoy about this home is that Lizzie and Everett have had a look at how we build
43:26houses now,
43:27said no on almost every front.
43:30They wanted to build better, more thoughtfully.
43:32And with that ambition and a great deal of hard work, they've created a home full of experimentation,
43:40innovation, personality.
43:42And that's around this teamwork, a sense of faith in each other's abilities.
43:48And the result?
43:49Well, a joyful set up for life.
43:53What an enchanting proposition.
43:55What an enchanting proposition.
44:19Thank you very much.
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