The house is situated on a rear site on a street in central Auckland, that was traditionally made up of small villas which front onto the street, and rear sites which were used for commercial purposes.

The neighbouring site was originally an auto repair shop and another was an engineering company. The historic nature of these rear sites meant the buildings would have commonly been tin sheds. The generic architectural form of the building with a pitched roof, vertical cladding, concrete base, and steel details therefore fit with this aesthetic.

The industrial aesthetic was highly influential in the choice of materials limiting the palette to concrete, steel and timber. The client is very interested in all materials being left exposed and in as natural a state as possible. The steel frame is constructed within the external walls, it has been left as a separate element with all its fixings accentuated, and is painted black. The lower floor walls are board-impressed poured in-situ concreate. These are sealed but otherwise the rough finish is left exposed both inside and out to allow the client to appreciate its tactile nature. The exterior cladding is random width and depth vertical Canadian Cedar, with the roofing simple corrugate.

The lower level has polished concrete floors and the ceiling is covered with bespoke routered plywood panels to aid acoustics. The upper floor is timber framed with timber trusses used above the sleeping areas, and the sarked ceiling in the upstairs living area being supported by an exposed steel portal frame.