SHOP THEIR STYLE
Industrial wood and metal furniture with a classic look suits the pared-down purity of this white-walled villa beauty
BECS’ RENO ADVICE
+ If you can, live in the unrenovated space for a while and get a feel for it. Often, what you think a space might need can change dramatically once you’ve lived in it.
+ Renovations can take over your life. Give yourself permission to have time off or, even better, time away.
+ Spend some money where you can see and appreciate it. A few fancy extras can make a huge difference, and add a ton of value, eg a fancy sink mixer in an otherwise standard-spec kitchen can lift the whole space. So go ahead and buy that designer pendant! + Don’t underestimate the finishing touch of landscaping (and employing a great landscape designer). It’s the icing on the renovation cake.
+ Have fun. You might think you can’t wait for it all to be over and that you’ll never, ever put yourself through that again. But renos are a bit like babies. You miss them when they’re gone and, before you know it, you’re pining to do it all over again!
BUDGET
Becs: Being in the trade and also having done a great deal of the work ourselves and in our own time, it is really hard to give a realistic reno cost and, if I am perfectly honest, I stopped keeping track a long time ago. I do know that we spent about $180,000 on materials alone. Obviously that’s not including all those hours we worked, or the blood, sweat and tears involved.
One thing I can tell you with certainty is that the old saying about ‘a villa renovation taking twice as long and costing twice as much as you think’ is true, even though we have years of experience under our belts!
CONTACTS
Landscaping Kathy Bills, kathybills.co.nz. Architect Bruce Barry, brucebarryarchitects.co.nz