One couple’s small rebellions against Queenstown estate’s design rules

This story is from the team at NZ House & Garden magazine.

Despite having a new baby, a young energetic dog and building a house during the past few years of Covid disruptions, Guy and Emily Carter seem remarkably relaxed.

It could be because for this very important project, a home in which they envisage raising a family, they surrounded themselves with good design professionals – Ant Jackson of Immersion Architecture, interior designers Space Studio and landscapers Creation Green.

And to top it off, Guy’s brother, Matt Carter of Toi Toi Residential, built the house for them.

“We’re pretty chill,” says Guy. That attitude extends to their view of the covenants that are in place in the estate where they chose to build – Jack’s Point, across the waters of Lake Wakatipu from Queenstown. Here, the rules dictate what your house must look like and how you can landscape the garden.

Each year, an audit is carried out to make sure the homeowners are staying true to the spirit of Jack’s Point. “It wouldn’t suit everyone,” says Guy with a shrug.

The payoff for the Carters is the large swathe of reserve land behind the house where their 2-year-old vizsla dog Sako loves to run. The house looks out to the golf course that’s part of the estate and where Guy likes to improve his handicap.

There’s easy access to the many bike and walking tracks that ribbon the lakefront. And there are the views. The Remarkables tower behind the house, perfectly captured and framed by windows that morph into skylights in the living area. Coronet Peak and Ben Lomond also pierce the skyline.

The couple moved to Queenstown in 2016, attracted by the lifestyle and the fact that extended family already lived there. Guy took the opportunity to start his own mortgage brokerage while Emily was most recently working as an accountant for the Queenstown Lakes District Council.

They have built a number of houses since then, using Matt for those too. But this, they say, is the one they love and can see themselves staying in.

So they’re not new to this building game, and the one big lesson they have learned is to seek help from those you collaborate well with and with whom you can build a good rapport.

The Carters bought the section in March 2020. “Buying a big piece of dirt as Covid started may not have been wise but everything went well despite Covid delays,” says Guy.

Designer Ant Jackson had his own challenge – to make the house look just a little bit different from its neighbours despite having to adhere to the same design guidelines. He was also keen to protect the relationship with Guy and Emily, who are close friends: “It creates an interesting dynamic. You want to perform and give them your best, and to make sure the friendship stays strong.”

Another problem was access to the site, down a shared driveway, and the orientation which was, essentially, around the wrong way for sun and views. “It wasn’t a perfect world,” says Ant.

His response was fourfold: the dramatic roof windows in the living area which create intrigue from outside and in; using split levels and an extra-wide hallway which draw you up and into the main living area; the cantilevered window seat in the main bedroom which gives a sense of more space; and the way the two wings of the house splay to allow for a sheltered and private courtyard which contains an impressive fireplace.

The interior designer from Space Studios may have been worried when Emily said she wanted a pale kitchen while Guy said he wanted dark. But even that potential point of conflict was resolved, resulting in a striking kitchen that has black cabinetry, contrasted by a wall of pale oak cabinets and a mix of dark and light benchtops. She’s happy, he’s happy. The cabinets and rangehood on the back wall are pleasingly asymmetric and an egg-shaped oak bar-leaner keeps guests hanging out with the cook.

While the bathrooms are united with a simple yet smart colour palette of black, stone and oak, they are all different. In one, a deep Concrete Nation black basin is trapped within a bespoke metal cage while in another, a vanity made of Caesarstone has an intriguing almost retro cut-out shelf.

The laundry isn’t some citified cupboard but a good-sized room, more like a mudroom, that opens to a side courtyard secured for the dog.

But the most successful aspect of the design, according to the couple, is the luxuriously wide hallway with walls that angle in and which is grounded with a sweep of chevron oak flooring. The wall beside the dining table is also angled, forcing the bench seat snuggled alongside to narrow to a point.

These small quirks raise the design beyond the expected and could be seen, perhaps, as small rebellions to the rules of the estate.

Q&A with Guy Carter

Our decorating style is: Modern alpine.

Best building tip: You won’t regret spending a bit extra.

Best money we ever spent: The cedar for the ceiling, the custom-made oval bar leaner at the end of the kitchen bench and the beer fridge.

Best piece of advice we ever received: Trust the experts and don’t rush the planning stages.

Best seat in the house: Under the skylights in the living room, facing the Remarkables. This weekend I will be: On the golf course at Jack’s Point.

We love this part of New Zealand because: Of all of the outdoor activities on our doorstep – mountain biking, boating, golfing and skiing.

Best walk in the neighbourhood: The Jack’s Point loop walk is amazing.