“Fearless” is how our writer describes the owner of this bold, colour-splashed Oamaru home.
A bright new build is a vivacious addition to historic Oamaru
Two blocks up the hill from Oamaru’s renowned historic precinct, Anne-Marie and Michael Forgie’s contemporary abode is definitely different. Their cerise mailbox and the matching front door overlook a sea of traditional gabled houses in muted tones and sit just beyond grand pillared stone buildings from the 1800s.
But Anne-Marie has never been afraid to stand out from the crowd. The couple’s previous home, a villa on the southern town’s rural outskirts, was swathed in 36 shades of pink, purple, orange, aqua and green.
“I’ve always been drawn to colour,” she says. “Pink and purple especially, much to my very sensible mum’s horror. I’m sure she wonders where on earth I came from.”
It isn’t that this sunny-natured homemaker courts controversy, she is just firm in her taste. And she is fearless about change.
The Forgies moved to Oamaru from Christchurch in 1992, after Michael’s father’s business partner died suddenly and Michael needed to step into the family business. Within a fortnight
of receiving the news, the young couple had packed up their lives, placed their house on the market and driven south with ninemonth-old daughter Summer.
By the time son Tasman arrived two years later, Michael was managing the Forgie Hollows & Associates quantity surveying office and Anne-Marie was determinedly renovating the early 1900s villa on their 3.6ha lifestyle block.
“Oamaru was a big change for us, coming from Christchurch, but it was a 100 per cent great change. We’ve always really loved living here. I wouldn’t move anywhere else.
“Because my mother was a schoolteacher and I’ve lived everywhere in New Zealand, I’ve never had a home town. It’s not that I had a terrible childhood – I didn’t at all – but I feel so lucky that my kids can say, ‘We grew up in Oamaru.’”
However, the children eventually left home, the sprawling cottage garden started to seem too large and their resident sheep and cows required a little too much work, so the empty-nesters agreed to sell and move downtown. The enthusiastic new home owner bought everything: beds, sofas, curtains, art on the walls. “I even left the Christmas tree up, with all the beautiful decorations and presents under the tree for the new people.”
Michael and Anne-Marie loaded vehicles with their children’s remaining belongings, clothing, a favourite chair and a few boxes of memorabilia and headed straight to the family holiday home in Cromwell, where they had been spending Christmases for about 15 years.
In January 2013 the Forgies returned from Cromwell to live in a rental property, hunt for a section and draw up building plans with help from the same friend who had designed their holiday house. Once they had found the right piece of land, architectural designer Ian Perry worked with Michael to create this house that maximises use of the steeply sloping site.
“We both like the square, modern, boxy look and Ian is so good and so clever and just seems to get it. It’s not a huge house but it’s very functional. And it had to fit in with the beautiful buildings here; we tried to make it attractive.” >
‘I’ve always been drawn to colour. Pink and purple especially, much to my very sensible mum’s horror’
Some locals voiced disapproval that the old bungalow on the property was going; many had attended great parties at that address. One curious gentleman made a point of inspecting progress every day for the two years it took to complete the project. A woman, aged about 80, delighted Anne-Marie with her straighttalking assessment. “I don’t mind this house,” she pronounced as she passed by one day. Anne-Marie thanked her, saying she hadn’t heard any negative comments about the modern design. “Not to your face,” the woman shot back.
Thanks largely to Michael’s project management experience and meticulous planning, it was finished in the nick of time, just two weeks before their daughter’s wedding in November 2015.
“It’s an amazing house to live in. We can look out at the sunrises and get amazing afternoon sun and I love the view over the sea. I think I’d never appreciated how beautiful the sea is before.”
Q&A
Living here: Feels like I’m in a hotel. I love it.
I refused to have: A scullery, because I’m too social and I wouldn’t want to go in it. I know it’s a big no-no for resale but I don’t care.
We usually spend Christmas: In Cromwell. I do a tree and more subdued decorations in duck-egg blue and silver. I dress the table beautifully but it’s too hot to go overboard. Last year, I ran into trouble with my homemade Christmas crackers because it was about 100 degrees and the chocolate Santas oozed out of their foil. Michael is: Very accommodating. In our last house, when I painted the laundry green, pink and purple, he did ask, “Are you sure?” When I said yes, he left me to it. Anne-Marie Forgie