| 121 T T Sue Russell Multiple awards mark outstanding year Mike’s own award-winning home features bold use of colour, striking wallpapers throughout, and a unique, three-pod design with adjoining bridges connecting one pod with the next. M O Brown Builders BUILDING Christchurch-based M O Brown Builders has had a stellar year, reflected in the company receiving top awards in two sections of Canterbury’s Master Builders House of the Year competition. The two builds, one of which is Mike Brown’s own home in Spencerville, couldn’t be more different; however, what they have in common is that they each received a Regional Catergory Award, a Gold Award and a Top 100 Award. “It was a fantastic result that we’re very proud of,” says Mike. “Each home showcases our high standard of workmanship, our attention to detail and unique flair in each design, through the use of space, materials, colours and lighting. Their situations couldn’t be more different, with our home on land out of Christchurch and the other winner, a three-level ‘forever’ home in the city.” Establishing his company in 1978, Mike is a third-generation builder, with his son Hamish now following in his footsteps (fourth generation). He has been a master builder for more than 23 years and enjoys entering projects into the annual Master Builders’ House of the Year event, first entering in 2004. “I think they’re important and a good thing to be involved in. You’re showcasing what you’re standards are within the industry. It also helps solidify your reputation and over the years gives history and context to your building journey.” Mike’s own award-winning home sits on five acres of land at Spencerville. Having built what they believed would be their final home back in 2010, Mike, wife Lisa and the children Hamish and Jessica enjoyed 10 months in the home when the earthquakes struck. “So we built a relocatable on our land and sat tight for eight years considering whether to rebuild or not. We decided to commit to a rebuild and this home we now have is a much better house – the silver lining, I guess. As Lisa would say, good things take time.” It is not surprising the home captivated the judges, with bold use of colour, striking wallpapers throughout, and a unique, three-pod design with adjoining bridges connecting one pod with the next. “Jemma from Next Dore Interiors helped us interpret what we wanted the home to look and feel like. We’re pretty relaxed people and wanted the dining space to reflect a cafe feel to it. It’s one of the key features to the living spaces that we love.” Krush Architects were chosen for the design. Mike says they were keen to have quite an abstract shape to the home. “I was heavily involved in the design process, and didn’t want a structure where the walls fitted neatly under the roof. I wanted angles and cantilevers. It was also important for us to get natural warmth into the home. Having an elevated floor gave us the opportunity to have fly-overs between the pods, which are lit up underneath at night.” River-stone used in the cladding was sourced from a very local resource – the Waimakariri river bed. “It’s only about five kms away from our home. Rolf, our stone layer, hand-picked every stone. We also chose Colorsteel, as its modern and maintenance free, and cedar timber to bring in warmth. Above all, we wanted the home to be in keeping with its natural surroundings.” The second award-winning home was for clients who intended the home to be their last, so a great deal of thought and care went into creating everything they wanted, in terms of space, while fitting it neatly on to a small, inner-city site. Positioned on a heritage-sensitive site, the three-level home has wonderful views across the city and the Port Hills. Designed to approach a Homestar seven to eight level, the home comes complete with an Aritco home lift, future-proofing it for its owners. “The home was externally and internally wrapped, using Intello wrap, and has an HRV air-movement system along with solar panels on the roof to name a few of its environmentally sustainable elements. “The build went very well indeed, helped by the fact that we had rear access on to the site.” The exterior is finished using Corten steel, Colorsteel and cedar. The kitchen, dining and living are on the first floor, while bedrooms and the home office are located on the ground and top floors. The home carries a Lifemark score above five and has been equipped to cater for changing needs. Today, M O Builders is a team of eight builders, plus Mike. He stresses that while high-end, bespoke architecturally designed homes are a joy to build, the team enjoy just as much the smaller homes, extensions, alterations, landscaping projects and the like.“We’re actually very good at that sort of work, where there’s often a certain element of problem-solving to work through.” Mike says he’s happy with the situation the company is in at this stage and the range of projects they get involved in. “Through the years we’ve put through a high number of apprentices with an average employment time of between seven and 10 years for our staff. It’s very rewarding to see our apprentices become qualified and experienced to then continue into their own successful building businesses”. M: 0277 336 623 | E: admin@erect.nz | erectscaffolding.co.nz Powering homes with precision 027 674 7111 tim@yourelectrician.co.nz
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