“Kate is awesome to work with, listens to what you need and is always happy to answer questions. We are so happy with the completion of our dream house, it is not often (we have high expectations) you can say that the initial design has exceeded expectations now that we are living in it!”

Michael and Lee Anne Collins, Meadowbank House 2023

“We worked with architect Kate from Milieu Architecture on a major renovation of our home in 2023/2024, and we couldn’t be happier with the experience and the result. From the outset, Kate was incredibly efficient, organised, and proactive, keeping the entire process moving smoothly and clearly communicating at every stage. While Kate listened to our vision for the house, she also introduced us to new design concepts and materials that we would have never considered on our own. She also helped with the interior design of our home, helping source beautiful tiles, stone and flooring, and helping with colour choices. She worked extremely well with our builders, creating a positive, professional working relationship, which we think helped in the overall building process, saving us time and money. Thanks to Kate’s vision, expertise, and attention to detail, we now have a beautiful new home that feels both unique and perfectly suited to the way we live. We highly recommend her services.”

Bronwyn & Nico Smitt, Browns Bay House, 2025

“We engaged Kate initially to renovate our existing house. Kate helped set realistic expectations with us in what we can potentially achieve with the house. From there we decided to build instead. We decided to have Kate design our house. Kate outlined the process step by step and was very clear on what to expect next. We let her know what was important to us and left the rest to Kate. From the initial concept till the final design we only made 2 changes. Kate listened to what’s important to us and incorporated everything into the house. What we love about Kate is she challenged our thinking from time to time from a design and practicality perspective. We are very glad we listened to Kate.

Kate is also very knowledgeable and this made things run smoothly with the council and our builder. Kate answers email and addresses issues promptly. Kate prepares notes on what was discussed onsite then would email them to us and the builder so there is no confusion which is amazing given we have to be aligned across so many details.

The final product is an amazing sunny modern house, excellent utility and efficient use of space. We would definitely recommend Kate and if we are lucky enough to build another house, we will definitely engage Kate again.”

Sandy and Gareth Fletcher, Mount Albert House 2021

"We hired Kate to design a summer house for our plot in the Stockholm archipelago (Sweden) and she did not disappoint! She was able to conceptualise our vision and create a functional, yet beautiful space that is full of personality. All deadlines were met and her professionalism and knowledge certainly helped the project along, despite encountering foreign planning laws and restrictions.  Highly recommended!"

Linda & Guy Parry, Stockholm, 2016

“Kate from Milieu designed our 250sqm coastal family home on Aucklands North Shore. She came up with a design that delivered everything we were looking for within a fairly restricted site, with her clever and creative design. We have really enjoyed the whole process and found Kate easy to work with. She finds a good balance between challenging us as clients when we need it and listening to what we want. We have always found Kate to be respectful of our budget and timeline and good at communicating when our decisions affect the scope of the project.

We highly recommend working with Milieu Architecture + Design.”

Stuart & Davinia Goodes, Rothesay Bay House, Auckland 2018

“We approached Kate after seeing the amazing transformation she completed on our friends' cottage in Eden Terrace. Working with her was the best decision we could have made- Kate's ability to unlock the potential of the limited space we had to work with, and design it around how we use the spaces, was incredible. The end result is well thought-out and tasteful- we love walking through the door of our 'new' house every time.”

Paul Carr and Daniel Malherbee, Avondale Renovation 2022

“Kate and team have been absolutely amazing throughout our renovation process. We loved the plans Kate designed for our house - they were unique and interesting, whilst being sympathetic to the existing structure. Kate has always been fast to respond to communications, offered practical advice and is always happy to take feedback and make changes. Her interior advice was an added bonus and we've taken on a lot of her suggestions relating to materials and layout. They have continued to support us throughout the build process, coming on site to consult with the builders. I'd definitely recommend Milieu to anyone looking for an architect for their new build or renovation project.”

Ben & Olivia Winterbourne, Eden Terrace, Auckland, 2018

“We are in the concept phase of a house renovation and we are absolutely thrilled with Milieu: Architecture + Design's progress so far. Kate has absolutely nailed our brief, which was to honour the 70s architecture of our home whilst making the most of the footprint to create a more efficient and connected family home. Her initial concept was exceptional and we are so excited to move onto the next phase of this project with her expert guidance.”

Jamie and Rebekah Holes, Birkenhead, 2022

We are currently the builders working with Kate on one of her New Build projects on the North Shore, which we are nearing completion early in the New Year. Kate's attention to detail in her designs/concepts clearly has a flow on effect into the construction drawings. They are extremely well detailed and are a pleasure to build from. One stand out item is Kate's response time, to us builders it’s imperative we get quick responses if we have any queries to keep the project running smoothly, Kate is super-efficient in her work and that meant we never had any delays onsite. Kate is very pragmatic and is always understanding of the buildability aspects onsite while staying true to her design and client’s needs. Nothing is ever a problem onsite and it’s a pleasure to work with an Architect which is so positive in overcoming challenges onsite, because let’s face it there are always challenges! Our entire site team has enjoyed working with Kate and would jump at every opportunity to work with her in future. We highly recommend working with Milieu Architecture + Design.

Melvin Riley, Director - DC Builders, Rothesay Bay House

“Over the last 18months we have had the pleasure of working right through the design to build process with Kate on an Architectural new home from concept to budget creation, working drawings & pricing through to consent and construction. Over the last 19 years I have worked with dozens of great architects, but Kate and her team have really re-set the bar for me. From day one she understood how important it was to engage a builder and use their experience to help design a home that could have features but not blow a budget! Each design meeting was constructive, organised and well planned for myself and the client to be able to view samples, sections and renders of the home & we were able to collectively tweak structural elements of the home & create a smooth build process. Communication has always been quick and clear with RFI’s sorted almost immediately! This is crucial during the build. Each site visit was followed up with tidy Consultant advice notes and clear design details. My site foreman and builders have all raved about how friendly, open and helpful she is when visiting site, and the clients clearly trust her design style and so they should! Kates architectural detailing and plans are exceptional I have reviewed & priced literally thousands of plans over the years from some of NZ’s most well known architects and I would consider hers to be right their with the countries best! We are so excited to be handing this project over with you Kate, and only hope this is the first of many collaborations with you & the team at Milieu! Fingers crossed the project gets the recognition it deserves.”

Troy Jury, Director / Project Manager - QBS Construction, Mount Albert House