Full Home Renovation + Remodel – Titirangi, Auckand

The Brief

This one's a bit different. The Huia Road project is the family home of Ryan Strawbridge – one of the brothers behind Our Projects – and his wife Hannah. So when it came to the brief, there was no formal client meeting. Just a house that had been largely untouched since the 1970s, a growing family, a mother-in-law to accommodate, and a very clear picture of what needed to change.

The home had real bones, and a setting that's hard to beat – tucked into the Titirangi bush with that classic West Auckland character. But it was damp, thermally poor, and hadn't had a meaningful update in decades. The goal was to bring it fully up to today's standards: warm, dry, well-insulated, properly ventilated, and genuinely liveable for multiple generations under one roof. Kids' spaces, adult spaces, indoor-outdoor flow – all of it needed to work together.

The Challenge

Building your own home while living in it, with your wife, mother-in-law, and two kids, while also running a busy building company, is – to put it mildly – a challenge. Progress happened in stages over four years, shaped around family life rather than a tight construction programme. In normal circumstances, a project of this scope would take around three to four months. Here, it took considerably longer.

The house itself also had its share of surprises. Weathertightness issues in the cladding needed to be properly addressed, structural walls had to come out to open up the layout (requiring building consent), and the entire home needed to be rewired and replumbed from scratch. Getting all of that done to a high standard while the family continued to live on site required patience, good organisation, and a fair amount of just getting on with it.

The Design

The renovation touched nearly every part of the home. Internally, the layout was stripped back to the bones and reconfigured – rooms rearranged, staircases removed and rebuilt, and structural walls replaced with beams to open up the key living areas. All walls and ceilings were reinsulated, and the windows throughout were upgraded to double or triple glazing depending on location. The result is a home that performs well thermally – not quite passive house standard, but close – meaning the heat pumps could come out entirely, replaced by a woodburner and a well-insulated envelope that keeps the home warm and dry year-round.

The bathrooms were reconfigured within their existing footprint, with all-new layouts, fixtures, and finishes. Tapware by Elite Bathrooms runs throughout, with tiles from Tonic Tiles tying the wet areas together. A fully reconfigured laundry – fitted out in deep navy with brass hardware – sits neatly alongside the main living areas.

The kitchen was designed by Joanne Godding, and it's one of the standout spaces in the home. Walnut cabinetry, a stone-look splashback, a curved island with ribbed detailing and a brass-edged benchtop, and three pendant lights overhead that give the dining area a warm, relaxed feel with a nod to the home's 1970s roots. All colour selections throughout the house were made by Hannah – and the result is a palette that feels personal, layered, and genuinely lived-in.

Flooring is engineered oak from Vienna Woods, laid by Just Hardwood Flooring, with woollen carpet from Mt Eden Flooring Xtra in the upper-level bedrooms. The staircase is a standout detail – wrought iron balustrading paired with oak treads and tongue-and-groove lining up the stairwell, all working together as one considered piece. It's Ryan's favourite part of the project, and it shows.

Outside, the cladding was repaired and updated from its original Tudor style to a random-pattern board and batten profile – reflashed and made fully watertight. New decks create level entry and make the outdoor areas genuinely usable, with the bush setting doing the rest. A sleepout and office space was also built on site, giving the multigenerational setup the breathing room it needed.

The Result

What was a cold, damp, outdated house is now a warm, dry, well-finished home that works for the whole family. The bush setting that made it worth saving in the first place feels more present than ever – framed through new glazing, connected through the decks, and appreciated all the more now that the home is actually comfortable to live in.

Ryan + Hannah have since sold the home to make their next move further west – a very Titirangi trajectory, as it turns out. But they're leaving behind something genuinely special: a home that was built with care over four years, lived in throughout, and finished to a standard that reflects exactly what Our Projects is about.

Ryan + Hannah would like to give a shout-out to the suppliers + collaborators: Kitchen design by Joanne Godding. Tapware by Elite Bathrooms. Tiles by Tonic Tiles. Timber flooring by Vienna Woods, laid by Just Hardwood Flooring. Carpet by Mt Eden Flooring Xtra. Painting and plastering by Ill Guappo. Plumbing by Fox Plumbing. Electrical by Newlight Electrical. Door handles by Handles Plus.