Grand Designs: New Zealand Season 1

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[edit] General Information

Technology Documentary hosted by Chris Moller, published by TV 3 in 2015 - English narration

[edit] Cover

[edit] Information

Grand Designs: New Zealand Season 1 Hosted by Kiwi Architect Chris Moller, Grand Designs New Zealand will share the stories of creative and enterprising Kiwis who are taking on the challenge of building their own unique and inspirational homes. No design is too ambitious, and no obstacle too large in their quest for the perfect house. Following the internationally successful Grand Designs format, the series will see the process of these incredible design projects, as well as the personal journeys of those building them – from the initial blueprints, through to the long and often arduous task of turning the plans into practical living spaces. Using archaic or new-school building techniques and material, and locations from the beach, to the mountains, and the hills in between, Grand Designs New Zealand will feature houses ranging from architectural designer mansions to DIY homes.

[edit] Concrete Farmhouse

Deer farmer and bachelor Lachlan McDonald is building a three-bedroom concrete home in the hopes to fill it with a family in the future. However, the choice of location is one of the most remote and stormy parts of the country - The Catlins. He's hired a top Auckland architect who is scratching his head at Lachlan's decision to project manage his first build himself. His choice of builder is also a good mate who specialises in constructing local milking sheds. Will this Grand Design be a perfect fusion of passions and experience or are these personalities destined to clash?

[edit] Steel House

Sydney-based writer Scott Lawrie's plans for his new life in New Zealand are encapsulated in a sculptural steel house he is building on a remote rural hillside behind Pakiri beach. Scott has an unrelenting refusal to compromise on his "legacy", but a budget can only be stretched so far. Will Scott realize his extraordinary dream?

[edit] Earthship

An Earthship is a non-traditional home built using recycled materials such as bottles and tyres, and even mussel shells for insulation. Young Coromandel couple Gus and Sarah Anning decided to step outside the norm with their Grand Design when they realized they couldn't afford a traditional home. Enlisting the help of community volunteers, both here and overseas and using unique building techniques originally designed for the desert in California, it's not certain how this Grand Design will fare in Coromandel's temperamental climate.

[edit] American Gothic

Fifth generation builder Steve Sygrove and his wife, Chrissy, have a passion for things pretty, floral and pink. Their unique build in the Titirangi bush near Auckland is a handcrafted American Gothic style house complete with ornate detailing like a Juliette balcony, spandrels, a horseshow window, lacework valences, and interior walls made of fabric. Steve rallies against the bureaucracy that is stifling the creativity in his craft and expects this grand dame of a building will be his swansong.

[edit] 45 Degree House

Nic Ballara clearly has a head for heights as he starts to build a family home for him and his wife Callie and their 12-year-old daughter. Nic's site in the earthquake prone city of Wellington is so steep that it looks virtually impossible to build on, however Nic is convinced he has a solution and is determined to build his first home there. A logistical nightmare lies ahead as this Grand Design looks to be an uphill battle throughout.

[edit] Clifftop House

Surfing Pastor Hamish Divett and his psychologist wife Diane have lived by the ocean for years, but in a dark, south-facing house that failed to take full advantage of the beautiful vista. To get the view they desperately desire, the couple have decided to push structural and logical planning to the limits. By building on a crumbling cliff with a sheer drop to the sea below, the Divetts will push their team to the edge to see this Grand Design though to completion.

[edit] Straw Bale House

Between them, Mike and Cathy have seven children from their previous marriages. With the last child finally moved out of home, the couple are going to build a Grand Design in which they will live alone together for the first time. They will be calling on Catherine's skills as one of the few female joiners in the country and Mike's talents as an inventor to build a unique straw bale and hemp house on an exposed rocky outcrop near Wanaka.

[edit] American Barns

Timber merchant Marty Verry and his Venezuelan wife Morella have imported two historic New York barn frames that could be considered the oldest buildings in New Zealand. With plans to assemble the barn on the couples' rural site on the outskirts of Auckland, they intend them to become part of a modernist mansion acting as a tribute to the different timber Marty loves. But will the new homes honour the history they are built on or is this Grand Design set to take on a life of its own?