How an Architect Turned an Old Garage into Small Three-Level Home in New Zealand

"I was always drawn to the idea of a tower… getting up high, grabbing the views and the winter sun," says Micah. And in 2017, when his friends moved into a bungalow, Micah found his moment in the unused garage out front. It was exactly what the couple were after: an opportunity to live close to their friends and build something that was going to be a challenge. "A real challenge."

After a childhood spent spotting architect Roger Walker's turrets and shapes poking out of the Wellington hills with his dad, Micah wanted to bring the same sense of joy to their tower. Constructing his own version out of blockwork – "they're modular, go up quick, and are pretty cheap" – the facade was livened up with whimsically punched windows, including a deliberately tiny "joke window." Never missing an opportunity for play, even the sloping land to the side of the house found a second life as a "Kiwi fairy garden."

Inside, Walker Box has the functionality of a much larger home, with nearly every space overlapping in purpose: salon and guest room, gym and music space, shower and laundry tub, daybed and dining bench. "When working with small footprint design," says Micah, "it's important to have a plan that works really hard" – and has fun while doing it.

A Flexible Entrance that Doubles as a Hair Salon 

The double bifold garage doors were a council requirement – the home had to provide two car parks. But instead of sacrificing a third of the house to a vehicle, Micah designed the entire ground floor to fit a car – though it never has. Instead, the garage opens into a flexible Genkan-style entrance, with a spot to hang keys, and even a trampoline. Underfoot, a floating floor (that can be removed, say, for a car) is laid with cork and provides discreet shoe storage as well as insulation. Behind the bordering blue curtain is Ivan's hair salon, and behind another curtain, the laundry – complete with a laundry chute from the bedroom above. When guests stay, the salon equipment is wheeled aside, and an inflatable mattress turns the space into a private room.

A Recreational Room Lit by a Double-Height Void

The other half of the ground floor 'garage' is defined by a dramatic double-height void – a move that sacrificed a few square metres but brought essential light and air into what would otherwise "just be a cave." The space welcomes recreation with gym rings hanging overhead and a piano below. A plinth beneath the staircase adds storage for camping gear and suitcases, topped with Ivan's pot plant display. Above, the statement red stairway begins its ascent – the colour a friend Ellie's idea, one that "kicked the colour scheme in a different direction."

A Bathroom Conceived as a Joinery Box

Arriving on the upstairs landing, the gaze naturally lands on the large mirror and floating ceramic basin, made by another of Micah’s friends. Behind, a hand towel hangs from a hole in the red rail – originally meant for a plant, before it found a truer purpose. Opposite is the bathroom pod, conceived as a "large closet", housing the toilet and shower. Inside, the stainless steel shower tray doubles as a utility tub for washing dirty boots and clothes. Without an exterior window, a small interior window borrows secondary light from the room outside, while pink floor tiles and purple grout illuminate from within.

A Compressed Bedroom with Hidden Utility

Behind the bathroom, the bedroom rests compressed due to planning restrictions, coming in at just over two metres high. Exposed beams help recover visual height, while no doorway – just light – keeps the space open. The low bed, recycled from Micah’s previous home, sits neatly within built-in joinery, while integrated bedside shelves, drawers, and a laundry chute on Ivan's side maximise utility without adding bulk. Opposite, a sweeping blue curtain reveals a full-width wardrobe built for generous storage. Light comes in through the low-lying "joke" window, and adjustable wall lights sit high within the beams for more height. Below, the concrete flooring was never intended – more a structural move – but as Micah says, "the builders did a fantastic job … let's run with it."

A Top Floor Built for Light and Life

On the top floor, the house opens into the living, dining, and kitchen space, where Micah and Ivan spend most of their time. On one side of the staircase is the main kitchen bench, "treated like a piece of joinery," with integrated appliances; on the other, the pantry island – a curved storage bench made from salvaged Cody, a native New Zealand timber. Harnessing the "often wasted" space around the landing, the island has deep pull-out drawers for the bulk of pantry items, and even the toaster. Extending from the main bench is the daybed: for lounging, storage, and seating friends around the mid-century dining table. The low "peanut butter brownie" couch offers another modular moment for rest, while overhead, the skylight bathes the top floor in light, even in winter. The triple-paned sliding doors extend the living out to the deck – an outdoor area that begins where the idea started, with a bridge, a threshold between their friends' garden and theirs.

"I've always been drawn to building something experimental ... with surprise and delight, a little bit of quirk and colour," says Micah. Inside a footprint once reserved for a car, Walker Box shows just how much life and light a small space – or a tower – can hold.