Six60 My Little House Pub

My Little Pub, designers of small, stylised backyard European pubs, had a new commission that pushed their usual ingenuity to the test. In celebration of Six60's Castle Street tour, My Little Pub was commissioned to build a small pub that looked exactly like their famous flat on Castle Street — except in miniature.

The creation was a joint venture between many different local businesses and broke the usual rules when it comes to design. Instead of making the home look brand new, we had to add the age and general 'decrepitude' that is the classic look of the neglected Dunedin flat. From the worn doors, windows and nicotine-stained interior, the pub replica had to look the part whilst still offering a superior finish.

Competitive Painters were called in to supply the paint and wallpaper that gave the flat its distinctive peach yellow look. Staining-paint was added throughout the interior to add age to the bar, giving the impression of mysterious leaks. The only departure from the flat reality was the literal bar, based on the famous Gardie Bar the band used to frequent, and the flat screen TV that pops out of the custom-made leaner top.

The outside was covered in mock brick panels to give the pub the classic 660 Castle Street flat vibe. Surrounding the brick strip we used Satin Linen as a more appealing colour choice to the original bone white, but kept that colour for the window frames themselves. Of course, we added in plenty of weathering around the window panes to show years of moisture damage and paint chipping, with capable artists adding decades to this new build in the space of a few hours.

The whole project is a testament to creativity and goes to show what paint can do to add a unique aesthetic. For more information on this project, or to hire your own little authentic pub for the backyard, check out My Little Pub's website.