The high winds of the rugged west coast had to be carefully factored into plans for this 100sqm home, which has just won an NZIA award.

A modest, secluded home with spectacular views of both Mt Taranaki, and one of the countrys most famous surf breaks, has taken out a top architecture award at the Te Khui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) awards.
The M + M House in Warea was celebrated as one of the best new houses in the Western region for 2021.
A young couple relocating to New Zealand from Montreal, and New Plymouth architects Boon devised the seriously cool beachfront first home.
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The high winds of the rugged west coast had to be carefully factored into the planning of this 100-square-metre house.
The larch cladding will weather with age, to blend in with the surrounding grassland and grey stony beaches.
The orientation of the home and its long narrow structure maximises warmth from the sun. Solar panels were also added so, if desired, the home completely off-grid in the future.
The house is built on piles with timber framing, meaning it’s lightweight enough to be easily relocated a necessity for anyone wanting to build in the coastal area.
The award for M + M House, which is about 40 minutes drive from New Plymouth, was one of three taken home by Boon, with the 47-year-old practice winning a second housing gong for Twigley Bach, which also boasts views of the mountain and surf, and an interior architecture award for TSB Bank workspace Mahi Tahi.
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Boon Architects picked up a second housing award for Twigley Bach in Taranaki.
Sandra Henderson/Supplied
The unique spot is a place where the whole family can truly relax and enjoy, arguably, the best sunsets in New Zealand.
Twigley Bach is perched upon a 2025-square-metre site that was subdivided off a rural property in coastal Taranaki.
The unique spot is a place where the whole family can truly relax and enjoy, arguably, the best sunsets in New Zealand. Similarly to M + M, the pods are oriented to create shelter for the deck from the prevailing winds.
The warmth of the ply ceiling, wall linings, and kitchen cabinetry create a welcome interior retreat from the sweeping exposed coast outside.
The bach was designed with adaptable spaces to accommodate children, friends, and other guests that come to stay. It has a quirky bunk room with bi-folding doors that open out to make an open space for activities.
The bunk room has views to the ocean and back through the glass to the living and kitchen area so that parents can keep a watchful eye.
The warmth of the ply ceiling, wall linings, and kitchen cabinetry create a welcome interior retreat from the sweeping exposed coast outside.
This space is really what childhood memories are made of, a space to spend time with family and friends with natures playground on the doorstep.
Palmerston North practice 242am Architects also took home a housing category award, for its energy-efficient and passive Stewart Residence, described by jurors as an easy and comfortable place to live and entertain in, as did Felicity Wallace Architects Small Town House which sits at the end of a country lane in a small Manawatu town.
Stewart Residence was described by jurors as an easy and comfortable place to live and entertain in.
Small Town House by Felicity Wallace Architects.
Both Te Hono New Plymouth Airport Terminal by Beca Architects and its small cousin Airspresso cafe, by Gibbons Architects, took gongs for team Taranaki, with 8-year-old practice Gibbons Architects also dominating the alterations and additions category with two wins for New Plymouth do-ups.
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Te Hono New Plymouth Airport Terminal by Beca Architects.
Further south, Whanganuis Ridgway Chambers by Drawing Room Architecture & Design, won an award for heritage architecture.
Judges described the apartments and gallery space as contributing to the reactivation of a leafy CBD area earmarked for future urban regeneration.
Judges described the apartments and gallery space as contributing to the reactivation of a leafy CBD area earmarked for future urban regeneration.
And on State Highway 1 in Bulls, the long awaited Te Matapihi Community Centre by Architecture Workshop, which opened last year, was praised by the jury as a signifier of the beginning of a new civic centre for the Rangitikei town.
Three enduring architecture awards were also presented, celebrating buildings 25 years or older that have stood the test of time.
The rarely seen Officers Barracks and Mess building at Waiouru Military Camp took out one of three enduring architecture awards.
The first went to the 1984 Eddie Belchambers-designed Officers Barracks and Mess building at Waiouru Military Camp, a rarely seen wood and concrete structure that cascades down a forested hillside, with spectacular views of Mt Ruapehu.
The remaining two enduring architecture awards went to Palmerston North buildings: David Taylors modernist Te Manawa Te Papaioea Manawatu Art Gallery (1977), which was inspired by a trip to the Australian National Gallery in Canberra, where Taylor also met his wife.
And John Scotts Te Rau O Te Aroha Mori Battalion Hall, which was built in 1964 to remember the soldiers of the 28th Mori Battalion who died in the Second World War.