Blog

  • Colour – Who has the final say in your house?
    Do you ever feel like the enemy behind the firing line when deciding on a colour with your partner?  At the beginning of our six-year renovation with read more
  • A Blue-Grey Bedroom Oasis
    One of the reasons I love my job is that I get to see some of the most beautiful houses in my community. Recently, I visited a home perched on a hill read more
  • The Old Paint Room Becomes The New Study Room
    After nearly six years, we finally finished the interior of the house, with our carpet being laid last December. The smell of a new wool carpet and read more
  • The Budget Bedroom Makeover
    Today, it’s with great delight that I’m sharing this post with you right before Christmas. Designing a home for Mum that she never wants read more
  • My Next Design Move And A Progress Report Straight From Our Lounge
    Hi Folks! How are you surviving the first month of Winter?  The mornings have been brrrr in Wellington.  My heart nearly stopped moving read more
  • Your Top Ten Questions Answered from the Shop Floor – Part Two
    Hi friends!  Can you believe it’s nearly the first day of Winter?  The last month for us  has been a creative frenzy, with our renovation jobs, read more
  • The Eighties Living Room Refresh That Even Surprised Us!
    It’s been nearly a year since I last posted about Mum’s living room redesign.  In honesty, when I presented her with the mood boards last read more
  • Your Top 10 Colour Questions Answered from the Shop Floor
    I was recently asked by one of the new guys on our technical team what he could do to feel more confident talking about colour with customers. So, I read more
  • When your front door colour comes knocking!
    During my last couple of shifts on the shop floor, the one question that kept popping up repeatedly was – “what colour shall I paint my read more
  • The Small (but mighty) Laundry Makeover
    Hello to you all in 2023! I hope this year has gotten off to a cracking good start?  Since the weather has been so delightful in Wellington, we have read more
  • Merry Xmas – My Top 5 Interior Design Shows For The Holidays
    Only a couple more sleeps until the big day arrives.  It’s hard to believe another year of change and uncertainty for many is drawing to a read more
  • My Colour Dilemma And Solving It With My Other Half
    I love renovating our 1948 Art Deco House.  Not only is there the satisfaction of seeing our creative vision come to life, but it helps me become a read more
  • “I Don’t Have Time To Test My Colour” (and other surprising responses from the shop floor)
    I’m back for another Colour Consultant run with a new Dulux look.  It’s such a buzz being back on the shop floor, helping people read more
  • Spring Revival 2022
    Daylight Savings officially kicked in last weekend. I always love the start of a new season because at our house it’s like two bears coming out of read more
  • A Milestone Birthday, An Island Holiday, Plus A Bedroom Progress Report
    August started off with a sizeable bang for me which included turning 50yrs old, a celebratory Rarotonga holiday, and a promise of a bedroom reno read more
  • Our Bedroom Remodel Begins…
    I first wrote about our bedroom design plans in November 2018.  Finally, four years later, we have reached the position where our budget and time are read more
  • The White Kitchen Revamp
    On seeing my last post, How To Get  White Right Every Time, an old University buddy from Alabama reached out for my advice on painting her read more
  • How To Get White Right Every Time.
    Hands down, the number one question I get asked as a Colour Consultant is, “I need a white for my room – can you help me?” I get the frustration.  read more
  • A 30-year-Old Living Room Makeover?
    Last month, I showed you the design plan for Mum’s kitchen remodel. Instantly, I knew I hit the mark when I played her the 3D rendering read more
  • What Will It Be – A Gut Kitchen Reno or a Tickle of Paint?
    Mum and I have been chewing over her kitchen project for the last six months. After we put up a new T.V in her bedroom and installed Neon, she now read more
  • Help? I Need A New Colour For My House Exterior!
    I have only had my Dulux Colour Expert apron on for a couple of months, and I am fielding all kinds of paint questions from friends and family. read more
  • Happy New Year + The French Gin Room Episode 2
    Happy New Year Friends! I hope you all had a relaxing break and spent quality time with your loved ones? We did the annual Christmas run to Foxton read more
  • The French Gin Room Makeover – Episode 1
    I’m not sure if the French drink much Gin, and we certainly don’t indulge. So what’s up with the weird title? Well, this room read more
  • The Botanical Study Room Reveal
    It’s only taken five months to get here, but I am now back in my newly renovated study room. I thought I might find it hard to shift from my read more
  • Spring Update 2021
    My Spring update will be short and sweet today as there has been limited tool activity since the last post. Due to the recent lockdown, Paul has been read more
  • Lockdown Progress Report
    As I write this, Wellington is eagerly awaiting to come out of our second Lockdown. You may remember my post just after the first Lockdown where I read more
  • Round 3 – The Study Room Renovation
    Last night, we were sitting on the couch watching The Block NZ, and we both said in unison, “it’s a good thing we are not contestants on read more
  • The Study Room Renovation – Part 2
    We are up to a point in the renovation where I am sure Paul would like to restrain me in a quiet room. I am SO EXCITED and so annoying!! I can see, read more
  • The Green Reno Light
    I have an extra spring in my step lately. We have decided to push through with renovating my Study room, the Bedroom, Lounge, and possibly the read more
  • Let the Grass Grow
    Today, I’m sitting on our dumpy couch watching the light Autumn rain dust the trees and wondering where did April go? And more importantly, read more
  • Our New Ply & Batten Garage
    In all honesty, pulling this post together was a bit of a slog this month. Revealing a second garage hardly gets anyone’s motor running – read more
  • The Partial Veggie Garden Reveal
    I love writing this blog; not only is it a perfect creative release for me, but it also incentivises Paul to keep pushing on our home projects. Two read more
  • Let’s Get This Party Started!
    Happy New Year Friends! I hope 2021 has got off to a cracking good start for you all? Paul and I had our Annual four-night break from house read more
  • Our very first Veggie Garden
    We are only one day away from officially calling it Summer. I can’t wait to rip off my black wool tights and air these blue legs! Paul read more
  • How to Design a Room – without losing your marbles
    To my surprise, after my last post on our Top 5 Renovating Mistakes, I have been fielding all kinds of design questions. It was thrilling to see how read more
  • Top 5 Rookie Renovation Mistakes (We Made and How to Avoid Them)
    I just wanted to say Thank You for all the offline comments on how to pep up my hallway last month. Your ideas have been percolating and I plan to do read more
  • The Vanilla Hallway
    Uncovering our brand new kitchen recently was my favourite post to date. Talking about our hallway now almost feels like the day after Christmas. It read more
  • Our Gut Reno Kitchen
    One look at our working kitchen and I nearly fell to the floor weeping. I know this is a tad dramatic for an opening line, but as you will see read more
  • Progress Report 2020
    I was hoping to roll out my sparkling new kitchen on this post. Due to lockdown, a few things have been held up from finishing this space. We are read more
  • The Laundry Reveal
    I have decided that life in lockdown is a strange paradox.  Sometimes it feels like I have been on home detention for a 100 years and at other times read more
  • Back to School
    Last Sunday, Paul and I were in our jammies drinking cups of tea until 2 pm. The electric blanket was on and all the heaters were blazing. It was read more
  • Mixing Metal Finishes
    While I was standing in the shower looking at all the different metal finishes in our bathroom; I began to wonder how on earth did I pull that one read more
  • The Kitchen Design
    It’s another crisp Winter’s day in Wellington. I am practically sitting on my heater while I type this post. My hands might be cold, but read more
  • Winter Report
    Winter officially hit us last Saturday. Just to remind us how brutal a Wellington winter can be, she surprised us with a power outage that night. read more
  • 3 Favourite Power Breakfasts
    My kitchen pinny is staying on for another round this week. Today, I would like to share with you three of my top-notch breakfasts. Why are these my read more
  • Stovetop Aromas
    Today, I’m taking a break from interior design to talk about my other favourite topic – delighting our senses. To me, there is nothing read more
  • Laundry Room Update
    A million moons ago, I posted about my dream laundry room from Studio McGee & Co. Unashamedly, if I could have plagiarised every inch of this read more
  • French Oak Coffee Table
    Last week I broke two personal design rules. 1. Never buy large purchases online, sight unseen. 2. Only purchase second-hand furniture, with the goal read more
  • Our Bathroom Renovation
    I think I have died and gone to bathroom heaven. After eleven months of dust, tools, and disarrangement, we finally made it to our destination. Our read more
  • Upcycled Bathroom Vanity
    We didn’t plan on turning a kitchen buffet into our bathroom vanity, it sort of evolved out of creative desperation. Our initial idea was to read more
  • Study Desk Reveal
    The dowdy and hard-working Cinderella has finally become the delightful Princess. Every time I come up the landing and see her at the end of the read more
  • Study Desk Makeover Part|2
    To be honest I haven’t cranked into the study desk makeover as much as I should have this week. I spent most of the weekend looking through read more
  • Study Desk Makeover
    While I was writing about my transitional study room, I kept having flashes about a piece of furniture I spotted last year at the Junk read more
  • The Hallway
    On my last post, I proclaimed that all the rooms had been discussed and customised on paper. Well, it appears that I had completely overlooked a very read more
  • The Many Options Room
    Can you believe we are up to the last room in our house for customisation? This lucky, last room is currently been used as an office/laundry read more
  • The Nearly There Bathroom
    Today is going to be a short but hopefully sweet post?  Our bathroom and laundry rooms have had a few more additions since the last read more
  • The Study Room
    Last year, I announced on my Facebook page that I was getting a designated workroom. It also happens to be the best spot on the property. If I was read more
  • The Dining Room Redesign
    I couldn’t wait to get to my keyboard to type up this post. I am not sure why I find this pokey wee space so thrilling? Perhaps it is the read more
  • The Lounge
    While Paul is finishing up the bathroom, I thought it was finally time to address the elephant in our house. The Lounge. To be frank, this room read more
  • Bathroom Tile Reveal
    We are so close to completing the bathroom, I can almost smell the finishing line. Perhaps this is not the best analogy for a bathroom post? All read more
  • Happy New Year
    Hello friends.  I hope you all had a fabulous break with your loved ones.  Mum & I spent 5 bonding days together in Auckland.  read more
  • The Outside Tour
    After giving you a tour of our back porch, I thought now would be a good time to continue the journey outside.  From the distance, our read more
  • The Nothing Area
    We have an area outside our house that I would coin for a better phrase, “A Nothing Area”.  At the moment this is the only way you read more
  • The Master Bedroom|Part 2
    Last weekend, I gave you a glimpse of my dream Master bedroom.  In this post, I am actually going to show you the canvas that is our starting point.  read more
  • The Master Bedroom| Part 1
    When I asked my better half, how he would like me to design our Master bedroom he replied: “Make the bed as big as the room & forget about the read more
  • The Colour|Pattern Workshop
    Eventually the day will come when Paul has finished with the rebuild and he hands me the decorating baton.  Since I want to be ready to run out our read more
  • How To Make A Simple Soy Candle
    Take it to the next level – Teach someone else “While we teach, we learn.”  Roman philosopher – Seneca. For the last 3 years, read more
  • Laundry/Bathroom Update
    Believe it or not, it has now been 2 months since we started the bathroom renovation.  Although I would love to announce from the rooftops that we read more
  • The Kitchen Rebuild
    Our next major room for renovation or should I say complete rebuild is the kitchen.  Even though this will only be our third room for a total read more
  • Test Pot Junkie
    The other day we were eating breakfast, and Paul joked that the only reason he has to go to work is to pay for all my paint test pots!  I am slightly read more
  • Getting Ready To Grill?
    I am aware that I am suddenly swinging everyone outside on our house renovation journey.  But strangely enough, it looks like we are inching closer read more
  • The Gin Room
    I am now taking you from the dingiest room of the house (bathroom) to our favourite hangout spot, the sunroom.  Or as we lovingly refer to it as “The read more
  • Market Selling – Is It For You?
    Over the last three years of market selling, I have been asked so many questions about my side hustle.  People seem to be fascinated about what the read more
  • The Laundry
    While we are completing our bathroom, I thought I would move onto another not so sexy room of the house.  The Laundry.  On Paul’s wish list he wants read more
  • Bathroom Makeover| Part 2
    Today I am going to reveal our overall direction with our bathroom design and also share some of the fixtures we have bought so far.  The biggest read more
  • Bathroom Makeover | Part 1
    The first room we are tackling in our house renovation is the main bathroom.  After three years of renting this house, I have had a lot of time to read more
  • First House Renovation
    After a year of hurdles, sleepless nights and a couple of meltdowns (me), Paul and I had finally bought our first house together.  Our happiness plus read more
  • Bedside cabinet revival
    This little showstopper had barely hit the ground of our local second-hand shop before I soared down and scooped her up! Most women get excited over read more