Lillian Chrystall was already a trailblazer when she designed this house, in 1979. By 1967 she had become the first woman to win a national New Zealand Institute of Architects award β the NZIA Bronze Medal, for the Yock House in Remuera β and would later become the first female fellow of the institute. She had trained under Vernon Brown in Auckland, worked for ErnΓΆ Goldfinger during London's post-war reconstruction, and spent two years in Paris with modernist architect AndrΓ© Sive. All of that experience β the European rigour, the local warmth β is visible in her residential work, and this house in Pukekohe is no exception.
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Set on 5,882 square metres of flat to gently rolling Franklin land, the house is built in board and batten with an exposed heritage brick core: brick that moves from outside in, anchoring each of the two living rooms with deep fireplaces and brick surrounds. Double redwood doors open to a central foyer, and from there the house opens in two directions β a family room and dining area on one side, a more formal living room with bay windows on the other. Both face north.
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The use of timber is prolific and deliberate throughout: stained glass windows filtering the light, feature timber ceilings, redwood doors. Cork floors in the high-traffic areas. The kitchen is practical β stainless steel benchtops, a servery window to the deck β but it sits within the same carefully resolved material palette as everything else. Three bedrooms are on the ground floor; upstairs, the master bedroom has twin sets of built-in robes and a wrap-around balcony with views over the gardens.
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Outside, the grounds have been well tended for nearly five decades: heated saltwater pool, spa, tennis court, and mature plantings that have grown into the landscape rather than being imposed on it. A separate 55-square-metre studio pavilion with pot-belly fire and redwood doors echoes the house's material language. It's the kind of extra building that makes a property feel generous.
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Chrystall practised until she was 85 and died in 2022 at 96, and an annual excellence award now bears her name. After 47 years with the same family, this house is a rare chance to steward a significant work.
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25 McNally Road, Pukekohe
Scott McElhinney, Barfoot & Thompson
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