Peaked interest

A brand-new Benchmark Homes show home in Wānaka is brought to life by Lily + Forbes Interior Design.

WORDS Cassie Doherty PHOTOGRAPHY Mickey Ross

The wooden flooring was the impetus for the interior scheme. It is Saint Tropez Oak from Marchand Luxury Oak. The natural grain and warmth of European oak is highlighted with honey and amber tones, and it is protected by a durable German lacquer.

“We’ve been wanting to build a show home in the Central Lakes area,” says Sam Evans, director of Benchmark Homes. “We felt like we could offer a great service and product in Wānaka, and we thought this was the right time to do it.”

Mission accomplished. While Benchmark Homes is based in Christchurch, serving the expansive Canterbury and Central Lakes area, the newly completed show home is now open and ready to inspire, just a stone’s throw from the central Wānaka township.

The build showcases an updated Benchmark Homes look and feel, with a fresh take on a classic homestead.

“We’ve done a lot of double pavilion houses,” says Sam. “We find people really like that kind of traditional look, and it can be quite affordable as well. But we added a Wānaka spin on it. That’s where the cladding and some of the other features come into their own.”

The exterior features bagged brick on one of the home’s forms, and cedar weatherboard on the other. “I love the deep, rich colour of the cedar and the horizontal lay with vertical battens. It’s very tactile, and with the bagged brick, it’s such a timeless look,” says Sam.

The gabled forms have been deliberately kept minimal and contemporary to keep the focus on the cladding. “It’s a modern take on rustic.”

The crisp white 90cm Bubble Saucer feature pendant from Mr Ralph has a timeless quality with wide appeal. Made of resin, it glows without glare.

Heating services were undertaken by Southern Electrics. The team worked closely with Benchmark Homes to meet specific requirements for heating and cooling throughout the home.

The twin forms are functional as well as beautiful, offering plenty of flexibility. The show home features three bedrooms, including a master bedroom with ensuite and walk-in robe, and a living area with stunning raked ceilings.

“Benchmark Homes is a full design-and-build company, so we don’t have any standard plans,” says Sam, explaining that the show homes are a great starting point to help people visualise a home for themselves. “This house is 200sqm, and one pavilion has the bedrooms, the other has the living areas, but you can easily extend either side to add more bedrooms, for example, or a media room. They can go at the front of the house, the back, or wherever the sun is. It’s a very modular design.”

Design consultants work with clients to provide the best solutions for all briefs and budgets, including high- spec energy-efficiency standards. Benchmark Homes can even help find a site if necessary.

The show home’s interiors reflect the same contemporary yet traditional style. There are clean lines, precise joinery and luxurious but understated finishes. “It’s an elevated look, and we wanted to do raked ceilings here, which look amazing,” says Sam. “It creates a lot of volume.”

Andrea Marshall and Siobhan Nolan of Lily + Forbes Interior Design have collaborated with Benchmark Homes for several years, and worked on the interiors here. Designing for a show home is an interesting challenge, as there’s no specific homeowner’s style to work with. “You have to choose your own direction from the start,” says Siobhan.

For Andrea and Siobhan, that meant following their own instincts and adding a Wānaka twist to
the Benchmark Homes style. “Because we’ve worked with them for such a long time, we understand what they’re looking for. Benchmark Homes are definitely sophisticated and timeless, and we like to create calm, airy and relaxing interiors,” says Siobhan. “To us, in Wānaka’s alpine environment, that meant warm, natural materials like stone and timber. And of course we try to keep it simple and neutral so people can walk through a show home, understand the dimensions and envisage how they would put their own personality into one of their builds.”

So where to start? With the flooring, says Andrea, as it’s such a large area of any home. “Then that dictates where we go with finishes and colours, and it flows on from there – all the while keeping in mind what the finished result should be. Here, we chose a beautiful engineered timber floor that we knew would work well.”

With a mid-toned floor and a light-filled space, Andrea and Siobhan opted for dark kitchen cabinetry.
A stone benchtop and curved panelling on the island complete the high-end design. Bedrooms
and bathrooms are also sophisticated. Says Andrea: “We prefer a warmer, organic look for bedrooms and bathrooms that’s still bright, especially in a colder environment. And having a wall-to-wall vanity in a bathroom or ensuite really elevates it – it’s like a bespoke piece of furniture. Then we like to bring in some subtle pops of colour, like the soft green towels.”

One standout in the show home is the feature wall in the master bedroom. It is timber-look panelling
with negative detailing and a built-in shelf, which adds warmth, texture and functionality and draws the eye up to the impressive ceiling heights. Andrea and Siobhan say the wall required a lot of planning and discussion but was well worth the effort.

That kind of collaboration is what Lily + Forbes Interior Design do best. In every design project they undertake, the duo works closely with clients, both having creative input yet with one or the other taking the lead on communication. It’s a very effective process, they say, and while this project had logistical challenges because they were running it remotely from Christchurch, they’re extremely happy with the cohesive end result. “It was a lot of fun,” says Andrea. “We really enjoy working with Benchmark Homes. They’ve got such amazing clients, so we’ve been really lucky to work with them.”

There’s a lot of trust in that relationship, and to Sam at Benchmark Homes, the show home is a real success. “It’s tailored towards people who understand the value of that level of detailing and finish, and we really feel this represents who we are and what we can offer.”

The show home is located at 43 Avalon Station Drive, Pembroke, Wānaka.

The style of the show home in Wānaka was very carefully considered by Benchmark Homes. Plaster work by Matrix Plastering creates the modern rustic feeling and tactile experience that is so important.

Involved in this project

DESIGN & BUILD
Benchmark Homes
03 343 8260
benchmarkhomes.co.nz

INTERIOR DESIGNER
Lily + Forbes Interior Design
021 0272 1833
lilyandforbes.co.nz

INTERIOR PLASTERING
Matrix Plastering
020 414 85106
matrixplastering.co.nz

WOODEN FLOORING
Marchand Luxury Oak
0274 272 659
marchandonline.co.nz

FEATURE LIGHTING
Mr Ralph
0800 677 2574
mrralph.co.nz

HEATING SERVICES
Southern Electrics Limited
027 825 5384