New home custom-designed to owners’ unique vision
This luxury, resort-style home features a bespoke Corten steel cladding system – the character residence is by Fowler Homes Waikato
A home with great street presence, intuitive layoutand quality workmanship is the expected from a much-loved nationwide home builder.
However, it can take a bespoke design to really show off the company’s broad skillset.
Custom designed and built by Fowler Homes Waikato to the owners’ unique vision, this high-end architectural home does exactly that.
Due to the proximity of Cambridge and subdivision potential on the 13ha property, this home had to set a benchmark for future development, says Fowler Homes Waikato director Joe Cattle.
“And the owners’ ideas for their resort-style home – together with our bespoke response – resulted in a leading edge, character home.”
The owners had lived in the South of France and were taken by a giant Corten steel sculpture at the entrance to a famous cave system there. Now they wanted that look for their new home.
“However, rather than attach Corten panels to an existing system, we had a bespoke cladding system designed specifically for this project,” Joe Cattle says.
“The complexity in getting the steel panels and frames to millimetre precision for the negative detail junctions was intense – it’s not as forgiving as a piece of timber.”
As the distinctive Corten cladding weathers, it will change over time – an evolving aesthetic.

The owners wanted the interior to have a relaxed indoor-outdoor flow. So much of the large 409m² footprint is given to the open living-dining-kitchen space that opens up via sliders to the outdoors.
Walls of windows capture the sun and views, with strategic window seats to take in the latter. There are also two other lounges.
Plus there’s a self-contained rentable studio, along with easy wheelchair access throughout, making it future proof for the owner couple.
There are many heating options, including a two-sided Corten steel fireplace, in-slab heating and a ducted heatpump for the master suite.
The interior and landscape lighting settings are versatile and dramatic, and a custom Sonos Inhome entertainment package also features.
Bathrooms are finished in a modern ‘aged-metal’ tile that echoes the home’s Corten livery.
For details contact Fowler Homes Waikato, phone (09) 274 5600, email: joe@fowlerhomes.co.nz, or head online: www.fowlerhomes.co.nz
Story by: Trendsideas
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