​It’s easy for things to look a bit sterile in a new build before you get art or personal touches on the walls. Or just mess, care of your own Destruction Specialist. For me, what we put in the house was just as important as how we built it. That was always the deal – Mr BuildingBoxes was in charge of management and structural elements and I was in charge of logistics and The Pretty. Of course that’s far too basic a division of labour, but let’s just keep it blue and pink for now.
It’s been a highlight – working with clever people, like lighting designer Tina from Roomie, and Portage Ceramics Awards finalist Caitlin, to fill the house with beautiful things. Caitlin even popped up from the Coromandel to see the place and work out just what she wanted to make for the space.
One of the big issues I wanted to sort was the huge wall that runs up the side of the staircase. I had visions of writing a chapter of a book up there, but the logistics on how my arm would feel after that were…daunting. Chatting to my super Prop Maker/Art Director/General Creative Genius friend Becky, we realised that in an ideal world, I’d love to cover the wall with big old printing press blocks, spelling out a short snippet of prose about the house. When I met Kasia from Craft Love Nature, a real project was born and the three of us have made my prose poem into something that is the talking point of the house thus far.
It even caught the eye of the team from Habitat and it’s looking like we’ll be teaming up with the folk from Resene to bring you BoxBlocks soon: a DIY version of the poem blocks that are looking pretty on our wall! (I can't share any of the final pics yet as they'll feature in Habaitat Magazine in March) It’s super exciting, if a bit daunting to embark on a big project for interiors like the BoxBlocks, but then what is adventure without a bit of fear right? The plan is to create a series of five different “ready to buy” pieces, which you’ll be able to personalise from a selection of paint pallets. Ours is Kingfisher of course with its teal and inky blue highlights, and there’ll be others like Kakapo in brilliant greens and Saddleback with luminescent black and burnt oranges. More when there’s more.

One of the final pieces of the structural puzzle was the pergola – or covered deck - and ours is now up, signed off by the engineer, and looking like it’s always been there.
​You might remember there were some “discussions” between Mr BuildingBoxes and myself about whether this was a purely structural or aesthetic element to the build, and happily he admitted that it “might” have an impact on the look of the place so I got some input – mostly making it bigger and with clean black edges. Phew.
We chose to use Clearvue panels, because the glazing panels are easily installed, require less structural support than heavy glass alternatives, are highly cost competitive and capable of lasting for many years without requiring maintenance. With Mr BuildingBoxes determined to relax a bit more after the mad marathon that was housebuilding, I’m all for low maintenance everything.
I’m also VERY pleased that it’s relatively lightweight because when it was delivered, I was at home alone with the Destruction Specialist and Lego Engineer. The delivery guy took a look at our driveway and paled a little, but with my newly honed “Running up the driveway to stop the kids adventuring in the creek” legs, I was ready for action. And action it was. The boys, (who were both naked because, boys and summer) tried to “help” and the driver knocked a branch off a tree so I was removing boys from my legs and redirecting traffic in between carrying each sheet down the driveway. Mr BuildingBoxes arrived as we moved the last piece. Of course.
But then it went up. A big thanks goes to Craig, for putting aside his rugby watching to help us put the whole puppy up, and, just like in this video, the pieces went up easily. We chose to powdercoat our glazing bars black to go with the rest of the house, and I’m glad we did, because now the whole thing just disappears, unless it’s raining and it feels like we’ve extended the house sideways with very little effort.
I’ll be posting a round up soon of all the great tradies we’ve used to tie in with my final piece for stuff, but I’ll keep posting a here for a wee while with other inside tips on the build as we head towards our final Building Consent sign off. It’s the time therefore to ask any further questions about products or people, either here, or by email, and as usual I’ll try and get to you as soon as I can!

In the midst of all the building madness, it’s always great to find some little gems that just work. So while we keep ticking things off our To Do list, I thought I’d share a couple Would Use Again products and people as I know some of you are keen on knowing the exact details of how and where.  

• I wrote about the overhead cabinets openers last time, and this is more of the same theme – it’s those drawer dividers that I’ve always wondered about but never actually invested in. This time, I’m totally sold. These puppies from Blum fit perfectly, in a multitude of ways, and just work. They’d definitely go on my list if we lost all reason and sanity and did this building thing again.
• Next is the fire. Because of our huge thermal heat sink (the concrete floor soaking up the Northern and Western sun) we have been plenty warm in the place thus far. But in the first week, when it was just Mr BuildingBoxes and I and there were a few doors still missing, we cranked up our wee Studio fire box. It took five pieces of offcut timber (untreated of course) to heat the whole place, the whole night. Seriously. That is some mean efficiency. On this one we cheated as there was one of these cute wee fires in a flat we shared in the past. But having one in the house is a definite yes this time round too.
• The couch. Oh yes, the couch. I looked all around town for different couches and they were all either a little boring, or too pricey. The folks at Kiwi Beds and Sofas could make me something, quickly, in New Zealand (yeay for the carbon footprint) with super kid proof foam and in whatever colour and fabric my heart desired. And it cost less than a “highstreet” store one. That gets a definite would use again.
• The oven – it practically cooks dinner itself. It did freak me out when I turned it on and the front panel Opened Up Like A Tardis! but then, it cleans itself so I forgive it. Clever Bosch oven.
• Aladdin’s Rugs. I have looked everywhere for rugs. But a friend told me about this little hidden gem and boom, I was sorted with choices galore and much cheaper than designer stores. It is in Auckland but they do deliver and you can order online so, it’s a win even if you’re not in the City of Sails.
• And finally – this stuff. It took A LONG TIME to paint all those walls. So of course when the Lego Engineer and Destruction Specialist finally got into their rooms, the first thing they did was mess them up a little. Yeay for something that gets rid of most of the muck. Mr BuildingBoxes sanity is retained. Sort of…