Houzz Tour: Post-Quake Recycling Drives Cottage Rebuild
The knockdown-rebuild of a Christchurch inner-city cottage combines heritage looks with modern comforts
For more years than they should have, post-earthquake stories in Christchurch revolved around homeowners struggling with zoning (the worst, a red zone, meant that the land was so badly damaged by the quakes it could not be built on), struggling with insurers, and organising demolition. But finally the good-news stories are ready – rebuilds that respect the houses that went before them, and add back to the neighbourhood. This tiny cottage in an inner-city precinct of Christchurch presents a better-than-before face to the street, with clever compact living out the back.
In truth, the old cottage was a mix of styles and finishes, particularly out the back, but the square shape and roof were believed to be original. At some point, the weatherboard facade had been replaced with plastered brick, and modern windows and faux shutters were added.
On such a small site, the old house would not comply with today’s planning allowances, so Coll’s design had to stay strictly within the old building envelope that had existing-use rights. Despite its north-facing backyard, the old house was dark, with a kitchen in the lean-to and a bathroom blocking sun to the rest of the house.
Logan and Dunn’s brief was for lots of natural light, so Coll rearranged the back of the house, moving the kitchen to where the bathroom was to give the sunniest spot to it and the dining room, and pushing a tinier bathroom back towards the bedrooms. Retaining the classic Victorian layout of having the hallway at the front was a given.
Logan and Dunn’s brief was for lots of natural light, so Coll rearranged the back of the house, moving the kitchen to where the bathroom was to give the sunniest spot to it and the dining room, and pushing a tinier bathroom back towards the bedrooms. Retaining the classic Victorian layout of having the hallway at the front was a given.
The house was wedged between an apartment block on the east and other worker’s cottages on the west, but the original brick firewalls had collapsed in the quakes and had to come down.
The firewalls were then replaced with lightweight, aerated concrete that would not compress the soil, and were double-insulated for better thermal performance.
The firewalls were then replaced with lightweight, aerated concrete that would not compress the soil, and were double-insulated for better thermal performance.
Building on a blank slate, Coll and the builders were able to update the house to high thermal performance. Coll had designed New Zealand’s first 8-Homestar-rated multi-unit development and enjoys working on small spaces, so he found this a particularly satisfying challenge.
“This is not the smallest place I’ve done, my specialty is working in small spaces,” says Coll. “But here, we designed it so that guests could not tell if it was a new building or from the time period of the original cottage.” Above-code insulation paired with passive solar gain now creates a warm and comfortable house.
“This is not the smallest place I’ve done, my specialty is working in small spaces,” says Coll. “But here, we designed it so that guests could not tell if it was a new building or from the time period of the original cottage.” Above-code insulation paired with passive solar gain now creates a warm and comfortable house.
Because the house is so small, Logan and Dunn were conscious that every detail mattered. “We specified cedar joinery rather than aluminium, which would have been a lot cheaper,” says Logan. “In a small cottage, things like that make a big difference. They are quite lovely.” In front, they recycled the old front door, painting it a striking orange to echo the cedar colour. At the back, where the dining room, living area and kitchen sit, all new doors and windows were used.
Windows and doors: Timber Doors and Windows
Windows and doors: Timber Doors and Windows
Coll kept the ceiling heights through the cottage at the typically Victorian 3.1 metres, adding a sloping roof on the dining room. This looks out onto the back garden, to mimic that of the old back lean-to. On this side he was able to insert a high window that draws in morning light, but is still private from the overlooking apartments next door.
As the build was progressing, Dunn scoured TradeMe and his favourite Riccarton market for fittings, such as the industrial pendant light in the kitchen and frosted glass fixtures in the living and bedrooms. The table and chairs were bargain finds.
As the build was progressing, Dunn scoured TradeMe and his favourite Riccarton market for fittings, such as the industrial pendant light in the kitchen and frosted glass fixtures in the living and bedrooms. The table and chairs were bargain finds.
Logan and Dunn were disappointed that the original floorboards were too damaged to reuse, but Dunn sourced rimu boards from a demolished house for the project. Re-machined, but still bearing markings of their past use, the boards brought the warmth and slight rough edge they were seeking. Recycled doors were refinished for the very compact laundry cupboard (to the right of the cooker) and cavity sliding door to the bathroom.
Logan had seen a kitchen she liked in a magazine, so she worked with cabinetmaker Ian Marshall to replicate the Shaker-style cabinets and tongue-and-groove island. Colour consultant Lisa Hurley helped with colours for the interior and exterior finishes, to achieve a classic look that reflected the couple’s love of mixing eras.
Kitchen cabinets painted in ‘Ohai’, ceiling and skirting boards in ‘Mt Aspiring Half’, walls in ‘Cape Colville Double’: Dulux
Kitchen cabinets painted in ‘Ohai’, ceiling and skirting boards in ‘Mt Aspiring Half’, walls in ‘Cape Colville Double’: Dulux
Logan and Dunn consider the bathroom, which opens off the kitchen, a tiny triumph. It seems roomier than its floor plan suggests (barely more than a metre wide) because of the continuous floor running into the shower and the scale of the heritage-look tiles.
Coll borrowed space from the bedroom behind to insert a full-sized shower. They were particularly delighted with the tiles – a dark grout on the brick-patterned subway tiles that cover the walls, and sheets of tessellated mosaic on the floor. Dunn refinished a vintage cupboard he found for NZ$40 and the copper waste trap was carefully saved and reused from the old house.
Tiles: Designastyle; Burlington basin: Edward Gibbon
Coll borrowed space from the bedroom behind to insert a full-sized shower. They were particularly delighted with the tiles – a dark grout on the brick-patterned subway tiles that cover the walls, and sheets of tessellated mosaic on the floor. Dunn refinished a vintage cupboard he found for NZ$40 and the copper waste trap was carefully saved and reused from the old house.
Tiles: Designastyle; Burlington basin: Edward Gibbon
The living room opens to the pocket backyard through bi-fold doors. The couple had found vintage chairs, but when the quote for reupholstery proved too expensive, they found new chairs with a mid-century vibe from Mocka, a local design store.
The main bedroom, seen to the right of this image, was designed to work as a studio guest suite, so it has double sliding doors opening to the living room in much the same way as a hotel would. In this way, the south-facing bedroom borrows sunlight from the north-facing reception rooms, and the sightlines from front to back make the space seem more expansive.
Logan and Dunn recycled the sliding glass doors – probably from the 1920s – to create a feature between the bedroom and living room, adding curtains for privacy if needed. Continuing their love of pattern and colour, the couple searched for bedlinen that was more interesting than just hotel white.
Bedding: Bed Bath N’ Table
Bedding: Bed Bath N’ Table
A second bedroom at the front of the house, next door to the bathroom and shower, is used for kids and gear storage, while finished attics above this room and the bathroom provide overflow storage for the family. The family lives primarily in the country, so Logan and the kids use the cottage for exciting city days in the school holidays – although she laments that bookings are so busy in the 18 months since they finished the cottage, that she has to get in early to secure a spot.
The cottage, which they’ve named Entwhistle Cottage, after an earlier owner, has been a joy to both Logan and Dunn and the many guests they’ve hosted, as well as a wonderful symbol of the exciting regeneration of Christchurch.
TELL US
What do you love about this cottage? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
TELL US
What do you love about this cottage? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Karen Logan and Antony Dunn, and their three daughters aged 12, 10 and 6, use the cottage as a holiday house and guest-house rental
Location: Christchurch, New Zealand
Size: 74 square metres; 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom
Architectural designer: Mitchell Coll, Coll Architecture
Builder: Jamie Buchan, Buchan Homes
Logan and Dunn have a reputation among their friends for being junk collectors, but the pair seriously believe recycling is a good thing – for their wallets, and for the planet. Recycling the cottage that they had owned for 10 years – or as much of it as they could after it was written off by insurers – meant a tight brief was presented to architectural designer Mitchell Coll.
The inner-city worker’s cottage is in a street of similar cottages although, sadly, some were demolished and replaced with blocks of flats in the ’80s and ’90s. A lane opposite the house has a cluster of untouched cottages, so the owners were keen to keep the period features of the facade.
Weatherboards and architraves painted in ‘Stony River’, sills in ‘Glenbrook’, eaves and spouting in ‘Ironsand’: Dulux