This paper provides insights into the dynamic linkages between the ongoing construction of houses for people displaced by war and disaster, conceptions of homemaking and processes of recovery and reconstruction in the post tsunami context in Sri Lanka. In so doing, it also uncovers the dilemmas and ambiguities that are embedded in the recovery process. A case from eastern province, Sri Lanka illustrates how recovery works in local areas are driven by various stakeholders from outside, whose negotiations and power, voices and preferences, both independently and collectively, define the scope for home making process. Our findings recommend that debates of ‘building back better’ following such disasters should embody an understanding of houses as political, cultural, social and economic constructs, and be cognizant of the wider processes of homemaking.