KNOCK ON WOOD
One of Mt Eden’s earliest homes still has its eye on the great mountain, writes Robyn Welsh
From the front boundary to the floorboards, this 106-year-old home exemplifies Greg and Ginny McCarthy’s commitment to retaining, restoring and repurposing significant architectural features.
The volcanic rocks from the original front fence now feature in their tiered rear gardens. The leadlight panes in their front door and hallway window were created from glass out of the original front door that was beyond repair.
As for the timber here, nothing has gone to waste at the hands of Greg McCarthy, a project development manager and self-confessed hoarder. “Anything you take out here is native timber – the weatherboards are kauri, the framework and studs heart rimu and the floorboards are matai, we’re almost certain. Every bit of timber has value” he says.
When Greg bought this property in 1998, the house was still in two flats, from its conversion back in 1937. All he knew of the house hidden behind a 3m hedge was that the weatherboards were kauri, the place was full of fleas and he’d need a jackhammer to clean the oven.
He cleared enough space to move in and threw out the oven. He gave his tenants one year to find new accommodation, declaring his intention to the restore the house back to its pre World War One glory days of 1913.
Back then, Mt Eden village was benefiting from its tram route from the city centre and keen newcomers were eyeing surrounding farmland that was being subdivided for housing.
One such resident was Mr W. J. Moran Esq. who commissioned this architecturally-designed three-bedroom house with a dining room and a breakfast room. The sole bathroom was at the back near the kitchen, its scullery and separate pantry and adjacent laundry.
When Greg and Ginny, a former nurse manager, converted the two flats back into a home for their blended family of five children, they demolished the derelict rear lean-to to add on a new kitchen/family room and a separate flexible master bedroom/second lounge.
From their light ochre colour palette to Ginny’s choice of feature wallpapers, authenticity and careful consideration has defined every decision.
In the new wing, they’ve laid Akwa timber flooring at right-angles to the original and opted for square stopped wall/ceiling finishes instead of cornices. “It’s important to be very clear about what is old and what is new,” says Greg.
Within the original part of the house, as defined by the long hallway, they have repurposed restored original rooms. The dining room is now their lounge and the breakfast room is their study/4th bedroom. The right, front bedroom is now back in use as a bedroom, having been both guest quarters and Greg and Ginny’s home office.
They were both working here the day when their painter knocked on their window and said: ‘You might want to take a look at these.” He’d begun stripping down the veranda pillars and discovered they were solid kauri. “The kauri weatherboards are still in mint condition too,” he says.
The pillars still intrigue passers-by who’ll venture up to the front steps for a closer look. With the hedge gone and a new front lawn in place, the new owners will have their own private view directly up to Mt Eden. “In this tightly held pocket, family villas don't come up very often,” says UP selling agent Colleen Strachan.