Easy collaboration between Nicola Ross Design and Inhouse Construction creates a Palmerston North home as individual as it is beautiful.

WORDS Cassie Doherty PHOTOGRAPHY Avodah Photo + Cinema

There’s a comfortable, familiar feeling of home that can be so easily missed in a new build. A house may be Pinterest-perfect, but how do you create that instant sense of belonging?

Nicola Ross of Nicola Ross Design in Manawatu describes herself as a technical interior designer, who really understands how a house can work on a personal level, and what that means for liveability.

“I’m the translator between the architect, the builder and the client, to make sure what the client wants becomes buildable,” she says. “From my point of view, it’s really about functional use first. If we’re not making space for your life and how you live it, it’s not something that you’re going to come home to and love.”

Nicola ideally becomes involved in a project from the get-go, ensuring the design intent stays true throughout the process.

“When I’m starting with a client, I’ll sit down and talk to them about their aspirations for the place. If I’m coming to your house for dinner, what are we having? What do your weekends look like? What are your hobbies? I feel like design success for us is in the human experience of a space. It’s not just about bricks and mortar; it’s about the house supporting how you live and how you want to feel.”

This house, a generous connection of pavilions with a courtyard and pool house and adjacent to a golf course in Palmerston North, was a special case. It was built by Ben Cousins of Inhouse Construction as his own family home, and Nicola had already collaborated closely with him and Precinct Architecture on several previous projects.

She’s fully in tune with Ben’s sense of style, careful craftsmanship and big ideas. “He has a language that he likes, so we have translated that over time into a signature style for him. And this house is very much that.”

Ben founded Inhouse Construction about eight years ago, with a small team that brings bespoke, high-end residential builds to life. He and his wife Shinade were expecting baby number three (Poppy, joining older siblings Olivia and Archie) during this build, so the intention was to create a haven for the young family to grow up in.

Ben says he and Shinade have built and lived in about 10 houses together. “This house was about bringing together all the ideas we’ve liked, and trying to evoke a bit of imagination and something a little bit different.”

The house, built across two sections in a development, is a series of gabled forms with each offering opportunities for different identities. Ben wanted lots of timber, classic high-end carpentry, bespoke finishes and a mid-century feel.

“Probably the biggest challenge, more than anything, was pulling all those ideas together in a cohesive way. That’s where Nicola came in,” he says. “She brings all the design into play and puts the pieces together. I find it a lot of fun working with Nic, she’s really easy-going.”

The feeling is mutual: Nicola is also impressed with Ben’s work. “The beauty of his projects, across all of his builds, is that he always does things to a higher standard than other people,” she says. “He really brings his craftsmanship into a build.”

Even in a home full of extraordinary features, the innovative steel staircase is a standout. It was fully designed and built from concept to completion by AvantGarde Interiors.

Ben always has a vision for how he wants a space to look, she says, and then it’s just a matter of layering everything in. This often features stone, timber, metal and concrete, warm colours and biophilic inclusions. “The more natural it feels, the better,” she says. “There’s a real honesty to the material palette.”

In addition, there’s a sense of playfulness, which was really embraced this time. “Ben is always looking for something that’s a little bit quirky, which is so fun for me: the design discovery between us is quite collaborative. He’ll come into my studio, we’ll chat about the things that we’re liking. This time, I got a phone call from him, saying, ‘I’m thinking that we should have a clinker boat hanging from the ceiling of the pool house. Do you know where you could find one?’”

This sense of humour – the suspended rowboat, a full-on golf simulator, the “drunken monkeys” powder- room wallpaper – creates moments of surprise.

“I would describe it as a grand house,” says Nicola, “but the spaces themselves are quite warm and immersive. It feels really relaxing, and that’s what we’re always trying to achieve. It’s our job to give you what you never realised you needed. It’s a big responsibility, but it’s always a privilege.”