The Truth About Our Design Process (And Why It Matters)

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The Truth About Our Design Process (And Why It Matters)
We’ve got a house plan in mind — and in this episode, we’re taking you inside the chaos, compromise, and creativity it took to get there.

Hey, I’m Josh, a builder based in New Zealand. In this episode, I’m joined by my partner Nicole as we take you through the real process of creating a design brief for our dream home — on a tricky, steep site with some serious geo tech challenges.

This house is more than just a build — it’s about blending families, figuring out how we live together, and creating a space that works for 4 boys, two very different design brains… and a budget under $1 million.

👷‍♂️ What you’ll see in this episode:
– Why we took a punt on a challenging section
– How moving in together shaped our design thinking
– The must-haves, the nice-to-haves, and the design compromises
– Tips for creating your own design brief (and keeping your partner happy)

This is all part of our journey to build a home that works for us — and we’re sharing every step with you.

🔔 Subscribe so you don’t miss next week’s episode: clearing the site and how it impacted the final design.
📬 Join our mailing list for early content, updates, and behind-the-scenes extras:
💬 Drop a comment if you’ve ever tried to design a house with your partner — we want to hear your stories!

#NewBuildNZ #HouseDesign #DreamHome #BuilderLife #MixedFamily #ConstructionSeries #JoshChapman #BuildingInNZ

[lw]

Wouldn't have known Nicole was nervous. She did really well in front of the camera, which is actually really difficult.

Also love the phrasing on "they have the privilege of going to another place" rather than language that might be more adversarial about having custody taken from you in a shared custody situation. As a child of divorce stuff like that is really noticed.

[josephkarl]

I appreciate the honesty and thought that’s going into this. It’s not going to be a house - it’s going to be a home, and specifically a home that you’ve put your heart into 😎

[meljones]

Usually I don’t take notice of videos my hubby plays but we both got hooked on watching you build your house. Now I’m so excited to watch another journey. Now I actually say “yay, builder Josh” and look up from what I’m doing when hearing your voice LOL. Go well and I look forward to the next instalment!

[SamSmithVev]

Welcome Nicole!! So awesome to be on this journey with you all. My dream one day is to design and build our own home so learning so much from this channel.

[Nikomairi]

I am so glad I came upon your channel. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, experiences, expertise and advice.

[bedef]

The two of you sound like an awesome couple. Looking forward to the rest of this epic build.

[simonkennedy]

As a member of your dedicated (and subscribed) Sign Off Squad, I was very impressed with Nicole's honesty and ability to get stuck in with something that probably looks and feels very alien, specifically, staring at a little screen and speaking at it. I just wish I could hinge watch this build as I did with the previous one. Can't wait to see how you connect moving from the house to the slope. Good luck from Sussex, UK.

[stangoodvibes]

Just renovating my lifestyle block and house at Tomarata, including an all new fitted laundry inside the garage that is now a utility room. Forget those lame plastic laundry appliances - I picked a second hand commercial Maytag washing machine and Maytag dryer. No silly beeping, no wifi, no 20 washing functions when you use like only 2 of them ever. Just huge volume, 30amp rayrol connections for max power, and basic wash dry functionality. I can do massive washes and the dryer dries it all in less than 30 minutes. 11kw of solar makes it free on a good day 💪🙌

[MikeyGaumann]

You are inspiring, man. Really respect the thought process and work ethic that goes into this whole process. Excited to watch this build unfold!

[dixie]

Great to met you Nicole. Great family and an exciting journey. Best wishes.

[plunge]

Awesome that your showing us this process. I’m a plumber in Blenheim and we’re about to convert the garage into a granny flat, so keen to see the process. Good timing on the videos 👍

[Mueller_projects]

looking forward to the epic build. Hi Nicole! really enjoying the breakdown, as a builder for 15 years, even ive learnt something. so often we just build, but don't often understand the whole process to get there.

[faa_luke]

What a cool story. Can't wait for this series!

[CapriceV]

Following with interest and loving the channel. Please keep up the technical aspect, go indepth as you have been, its enjoyable 😉

[jasonferris]

Great episode in what is shaping up to be an excellent series.

Well done on your first time in front of the camera Nicole.

[KarenWood-cjxi]

Welcome Nicole! Loved the softer feel of this video.😊

[DimONMINIpeople]

My wife and I have acquired a VERY similar plot to build our forever home. Also on a slope and we also want to build it on a slab)) Really wanna see how you'll tackle it. Good luck, guys!

[OliverEwert]

Awesome section, we looked at that site when we were looking for a house. Definitely wondered about the geotech and why it had been empty for so long. Looking forward to seeing you build something awesome there!

[maiathorne]

Great to have the balance in presenting style from Nicole. 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[jeanhawken]

Well done Nicole keep it up. The green couch will live on.