Drum roll please…. the winner of the Belle/Coco Republic Interior Designer of the Year 2012 is Iain Halliday for BKH. Iain Halliday is Australia’s pre-eminent architect and interior designer with over 30 years experience. Burley Katon Halliday are renowned for their design quality and innovation. Here is just a selection of recent work short-listed for the awards including the Ikon Apartment, johnandpeter canteen, La Croix and the Whale Beach House.

Thank you to Belle magazine for sharing these images.

Minimalist 2 storey apartment space within a heritage building in Amsterdam. Clean lines, sharp angles, limited colour palette and smooth surfaces. Warmed by wood elements. A steel staircase angles between the levels separating the dining and living spaces in the open plan first floor. But the hero of the space is fully equipped (albeit minimalist lined) kitchen centre stage. Design by Laura Alvarez Architecture.

Oh dear! That makes me sound quite inappropriate. That’s not what I meant. What I do mean though is that I love this little worker’s cottage in inner city Melbourne I found while real estate stalking. Bright and fun and quirky and cute. White walls bounce the colour pops around, the little girl’s room is so hubba bubba bubble gum pink that I can almost hear waves of giggles, the backyard is pocket handkerchief size perfect. Who needs large when 2 bedrooms in the inner city is just right. Link here while it lasts.

P.S. A few of you may recognise this house but we’ll keep it our little secret don’t you think 😉

Nestled amongst the trees on Barrier Island, New Zealand is this sustainably built home by Crosson, Clarke, Carnachan. Opening out to the site it embraces the landscape, borrowing its beauty. It is a simple home but its simplicity sits strongly with the majesty of the surrounds. External walls mimic the tree trunks while walls of windows dissolve the barrier between inside and out.

I’m slowly coming to the conclusion that New Zealanders build the best beach houses. This is a big concession coming from an Australian. We pride ourselves on understanding the beach culture and our architects are some of the world’s best but it just seems that the Kiwi’s just do it better with the bach. For those of you who don’t know bach is the kiwi for beach house. But it means more than just the building. It’s the memories. It’s the summer days and the salt spray and the barbeques and the fun. It’s about summer rituals and roughing it and making do and fishing and wet swimsuits and sandy towels. Even when it’s a luxury bach. It’s stunning but it is still not overly precious. After all it really is about the sand and sea and the view and those long days with family and friends. A series of connected pavilions on a dramatic site at Kuaotunu by Auckland based architects Crosson, Clarke, Carnachan.