The site is extraordinary — perched on the side of a forested cliff above Whangarei Harbour at Parua Bay, with native bush falling away on all sides. The brief was equally clear: a small, simple getaway for two people, with a limited budget and no desire to over-engineer it.

The design responds to the site's drama without trying to compete with it. Simple in form, compact in footprint, it sits quietly in the trees and looks out across the harbour through a carefully framed outlook.

James Hardie fibre cement cladding gives the exterior a low-maintenance finish suited to the forest setting — unfussy and durable, letting the landscape do the talking.