A compact studio apartment, strict body corporate rules and a limited budget are not factors that usually lead to an exciting design outcome. But for Auckland writer Jo Bates, they provided a challenge to create the perfect inner-city apartment.
It helped that Jo has written for architectural and interiors magazines here and in Australia for years, so was adept at understanding how a property works. Liaising with architects and viewing the interiors of countless houses also meant she had plenty of design ideas in her arsenal. “I actually had grand renovation plans,” says Jo, who bought the Herne Bay studio three years ago.“I was going to totally gut the space and push out the back wall. An architect had drawn up the plans but then the body corp said no.”
Instead, Jo…
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Haven (Digital) - 1 Issue, July 2022