Our Family Home REVEALED! (Architectural Deep Dive)

Summary

After years of sailing and staying in different homes, Elayna and Riley decided to settle with their children in Vanuatu. They considered three countries before choosing the island. After announcing their plans, they received more than 400 offers from architects.

Their design process involved three young Belgian architects, local builder Liam, and engineering advice. The plans are still being refined, and construction depends on site work, permits, engineering, and budget.

Design priorities and features

The family plans to build a roughly 300-square-metre, single-storey, S-shaped home. The design has been scaled back from earlier ideas and revised to avoid an overly open, corridor-like feel.

Key priorities include:

• Fitting the house into the landscape rather than flattening the hillside, while making the most of the ocean and waterfall views.
• Orienting the home to catch prevailing winds and encourage cross-ventilation, with the aim of minimizing air-conditioning use.
• Using local coral limestone and other natural materials where practical, with a Mediterranean farmhouse style adapted to Vanuatu.
• Preparing for cyclones, heavy rain, earthquakes, and landslides. Plans include a strong roof structure, structural walls and beams, protective window shutters, and a reinforced shelter room with a toilet and sink.
• Responding to site conditions: an investigation found wet clay rather than stable coral rock, so the house had to be moved farther from the edge and the foundation needs to be anchored deeper.

Planned spaces include a pantry, kitchen, living and reading areas, bedrooms, and an outdoor patio. The family also discussed a separate gym and sauna, as well as a future interior-design and furnishing project.

Personal wellbeing tips

Elayna shared several tips for supporting wellbeing: prioritize sleep, replace some running with walking and weightlifting, spend time in nature, try breathing practices, delegate tasks, and consider therapy. She said therapy helped her understand her triggers, set boundaries, and feel less overwhelmed.

The episode also promotes the SeaPeople app’s developing weather-based route-planning tools for sailors.

Notable locations, people, and products

• Locations: Vanuatu, Micronesia, the Azores, Belgium, New Zealand, and Bangkok.
• People: Elayna and Riley; Liam of Vaughn Construction; the Belgian architects; Sofia, who describes building on a hillside in the Azores; Maureen; and site specialist Jono.
• Products and services: BetterHelp therapy; the SeaPeople app; and La Vagabonde III, the family’s boat, which is for sale.