Sometimes a project’s name belies its beauty. It’s the case with the ‘bunkhouse’, a 200sqm vineyard property built to accommodate the owners’ family. It is, in fact, an entire house with an open-plan communal space, bathroom, powder room and four bedrooms. All the bedrooms, one with its own ensuite and another with bunks, enjoy vistas and access to a porch. These aren’t what sets the project apart, however. It’s how the property is so in tune with its surrounds and so true to the architectural language of Queenstown. It’s as if the house has always been here — and that took meticulous craftsmanship by the builders. The team relished the chance to work closely with the architect and clients to turn their vision into reality, and it shows.

Materials include timber, stone and corrugate roofing. Architectural features: pitched ceilings, exposed rafters and trusses, and a fireplace made from slabs of stone, some of which required a Hiab to lift into place. Bathrooms are finished with French oak and natural stone tiles. Two sets of timber French doors in the kitchen-dining-living space open to a loggia where there are more features that make the house a real product of Central Otago. Note the pitched ceiling that follows the roofline of the building, cobble flooring and that must-have for crisp, clear nights — an outdoor fireplace. If you want an example of a skilfully crafted home that has become part of its lovely environs, look no further.