How this semi-rural family home celebrates its picturesque location

When Bay of Plenty couple, Geoff and Cris Seavill, set out to build a new home that was uniquely their own, they were clear about what they hoped to achieve. “We wanted to have a blank canvas to build a warm, modern house with every feature chosen by us to suit our tastes and the way we live,” explains Cris.

The end result is a beautiful and stylish, yet practical home that not only makes the most of the ocean outlook from their semi-rural location but also caters perfectly to their family needs.

The couple chose Signature Homes to bring their vision to life and say it was important that they felt comfortable with their building company from the very beginning. For Geoff and Chris, transparency and understanding of the build processes alongside excellence in both construction and design were critical when it came to choosing who they would partner with.

“Signature Homes had quality and design, plus clear systems in place,” says Cris. “We were confident there would be no unpleasant surprises at the end of the build.”

The couple wanted to create a home with a sense of space. They opted for an open plan design with high ceilings that connects to the outdoors, which boasts a covered space. This creative feature allows the family to use the area year-round and essentially creates an extra room for activities and entertaining.

“We wanted a big open space,” says Cris, who sold up in Mount Maunganui before embarking on their new lifestyle build. “The layout allows all the rooms to look over the pool and out to the water views.”

The couple also has a nine-year-old son Luca and Star, the dog, so creating separate zones for kids and adults was a must-have. By centralising the high traffic common areas and adding living wings on either side, the family has a home that not only delivers the comfort of togetherness but the luxury of peace when they choose.

The key to executing a successful open plan home is the interior design. Often a pared-back scheme helps accentuate the sense of space and flow, and this home is a great example of how simple design can create dramatic results.

“We went for a black and white theme. The interior designer at Signature Homes was able to provide the expertise and guidance to narrow down the colour and fabric choices, and made it a very easy process,” says Cris. “ We wanted timber flooring and chose vintage oak to soften the black and white look. We wanted clean lines with no dust collectors.”

The interior design theme connects perfectly with the exterior look of the home, which boasts richly stained wood cladding in Resene Bushtrack contrasted with Celcrete cladding painted in Resene Half Rice Cake.

Creating a home that celebrated natural wood accents was a must for the couple and helped in the decision making. “The pre-designed plan we chose had cedar cladding and we love cedar,” says Cris. “We also added an exterior feature wall.”

The finished home has managed to effortlessly blend styles to create a modern look with vintage touches. That includes committing to features at the time of the build to future-proof their home.

“We have added an electric vehicle charging outlet and the insulation was upgraded to include internal walls and the garage,” says Cris.

While insulation may not be glamorous, this smart forward-thinking move means the garage can be turned into a single room in the future, which will be great if the family’s needs change and gives them options if they want to sell. Not that they are thinking about moving anytime soon.

“We’re planning to stay here for a while,” laughs Cris.

However, if they do decide to up sticks they would most definitely undertake a new build again. Cris says she loved the whole interior design process. Despite it being busy, she enjoyed the decision-making process and seeing the results. For Geoff, being onsite and watching the process was his favourite part of building.

For those people considering building their own dream home, the Seavills have some sound advice. “Talk to several building companies. Make sure they have proven systems in place and choose wisely where you spend on extras,” says Cris. “We would most definitely build with Signature Homes again.”