New Zealand homes have a reputation for being cold and damp. We listed a few ways to warm up your home during the winter months.  Insulation Insulating your home will save you money in the long run. Its estimated 42 percent of household heat is lost through the roof! Walls account for around 24 percent of heat loss, while floors are 10%(1). If you want to increase the temperature in your home, insulate your ceilings, walls and timber floors!   Curtains It may seem like a simple solution, but curtains are a great way to keep heat in at night. Install thick thermal curtains to ad ..read more

Defining Open Plan Living Spaces Open Plan living has become popular in new homes. Open plan living combines the kitchen, dining and living into one large space. It is great for utilising space; especially in apartments where there is not a lot of space to work with. In some cases, like studio apartments there may only be one or two rooms in the entire apartment. We look at ways to define each space within open plan living.  Using furniture to define space Whether it is built-in or stand-alone, shelving is a great way to define space. Shelving can form walls that divide spaces, these ..read more

Modular Home Case Study Auckland’s housing crisis was the catalyst for our modular home project. Check out the design below!   Modular Home Design A modular design can be replicated many times on one site. The same floor plan can be repeated to create stand alone homes, duplex units or apartments. The DWA modular home consists of a simple rectangular form. The design consists of a three bedroom home within a footprint of less than 100m2. The main entrance leads into an ‘L – shaped’ kitchen, dining and living space. The bathroom is located along one side of the home, with bedrooms on the o ..read more

The Architects of Arch Hill Dixon Wild has been located in Arch Hill for many years. Arch Hill is a great place to have a workplace. It has a lot to offer, from cafes to art galleries. We thought we would compile a list of our favourite activities and landmarks in the area, have a read!   Landmarks Grey Lynn Public Library The Grey Lynn library was designed by architect William Henry Gummer. Built in 1924, it has been standing for well over 90 years! There is a lecture hall directly adjacent to the library that can be hired by local community groups. The Grey Lynn library is located alon ..read more

Working from Home Tips Dixon Wild Architects spent the last lockdown (2021) working from home. Auckland was in lockdown for about 3 months. This is a long time to be away from the office! Working from home can have its distractions. During lockdown we learned a few things about maintaining productivity while working from home. We’ve listed a few below, have a read! 1. Set up a home office This means finding a dedicated space to work. It is important to maintain a good work-life balance, even at home! Set up a space on the dining room table, in the kitchen or laundry. By separating wo ..read more

Covered Outdoor living areas: The summer months are prefect for outdoor living. An outdoor living space can be anything from a patch of grass to a covered deck. Decks are great for outdoor living, but if they are in constant sun they can become too hot to enjoy; not to mention the risk of sun burn! A great solution is to cover your deck. A few options are listed below: Sunsail, like this one from Mitre10 Pergola, open frame with vine grown above. Built roof addition Louvre roof system   Permanent Roof Cover The image above shows a Dixon Wild Architects project in Northland. The covered ..read more

House Renovations – Getting Started House renovations can be a great way to increase the value of your home. If you don’t know where to start, check out some of our tips below.   Initial Concept and pre-design Figuring out what you want done to your property is a good starting point for any project. Determining the reasons behind the renovation is also important; especially if you plan on using an architect to do the work. It is a good idea to make a wishlist of your desires, for example – more bedrooms for a growing family, open plan living or more sunlight into living spaces. Once you k ..read more