STYLE INSIDER
The prompt “you’ve got mail” has taken on new meaning for one Otago couple
Once a post office, now a light and bright home for an Otago couple.
D rFiona Doolan-Noble and John Noble now sleep in an old post office. It’s part of a property that also includes the village’s former general store which they discovered five years ago in Patearoa when hunting for a holiday getaway.
The couple are seasoned renovators and John is a keen gardener so a project of this size didn’t daunt them. “We’ve tried to be sensitive to the original,” says Fiona, a senior research fellow. The post office still had the red lino on the floor which Fiona says was “sheer hell” to take up.
She describes the interior style as comfortable, functional and in keeping with the history of the property. On a visit to Queenstown, these dog owners discovered the Lonely Dog series by Ivan Clarke and bought some of the artworks. “We have three dogs. If I had my way we’d have more but in a house the size of Crockery Bob’s, it’s not practical,” says Fiona.
Crockery Bob refers to Robert McSkimming, who sold crockery, and ran the general store and post office from 1893 to 1918. “All the locals call the house Crockery Bob’s,” says Fiona. A friend who helped with the renovation is also called Robert McSkimming – and yes, he’s related to the original.
Now that ex-mortgage broker John is retired, the couple live here full-time and are happily entrenched in the community. “There is a rhythm to rural life that is reassuring,” says Fiona.
The most interesting homes are usually the ones that reflect the tastes and personalities of the people who live there. That’s often achieved by choosing furniture and hanging art that tells a story and brings an empty space to life. The challenge lies in incorporating items that are traditionally about function to the detriment of form.
Traditionally TVs have been focal points in our living rooms because we value them for relaxation and recreation. But when they’re switched off, the large black screen often contradicts the carefully considered styling of a room.
The Frame TV from Samsung solves the dilemma by letting you make your own TV, turning the black screen into a work of art that reflects your style, and how you want your room to look and feel.
When you want to watch TV, it’s all about the 100 percent colour volume with Quantum Dot technology that delivers the finest picture, taking light and turning it into colour that stays true, no matter what the level of the brightness in the room. But when it’s switched off, a different kind of magic happens.
Art Mode transforms your Frame TV into your very own art gallery, allowing you to showcase your favourite pieces of art, customised and controlled to suit your space and mood.
The Frame TV’s modern, slimmer design means it sits flush against your wall like a piece of art – no matter which size screen
you choose – and just like art, there are no heavy cables hanging from it. The single, translucent One Clear Connection cable is designed to blend into the wall and is all you need to connect devices to your TV.
The potential for customisation starts with different mat canvas options and removable frame bezels that can be swapped out according to the type of art you decide to display, or when you want to refresh the look of the room. Modern bezel style comes in white, teak and brown, while the new bevelled style comes in white and brick red. They’re magnetic, so very easy to change up.
When it comes to displaying artwork, you can choose from more than 1400 pieces of art from some of the world’s top galleries, artists and designers. There are a wide range of genres available including landscapes, architecture and classics. A brightness sensor automatically adjusts the screen to complement the image as the light changes in the room.
The Frame TV can also display your own photos, elevating your most-loved moments to the status of a piece of art, and creating a display that is utterly unique to your home.
A motion sensor makes The Frame TV as energy efficient as it is design-friendly, switching the screen off to save power when there’s no one in the room.
Of course, art doesn’t belong solely on the wall and neither does The Frame TV. It comes with a height-adjustable stand or the optional Studio Stand that displays your TV like a canvas on an easel.
There are thousands of ways to customise The Frame TV allowing you to create a creative, modern living space.