NEW LEASE ON LIFE
Donna Fleming finds a renovation that turned into a rebuild
When UK couple Ross Hemming and Mary McFarlane bought a 1970s house at the end of a St Heliers cul-de-sac three years ago, they intended on carrying out a major makeover.
The house had views to the harbour and Rangitoto Is, was an immaculately preserved homage to the ‘70s and ‘80s — but it wasn’t their cup of tea.
It wasn’t long before they ran into code compliance issues — framing, for instance, wasn’t up to scratch and needed replacing. So they decided to strip the house back to the base, re-build and get a home with the features they wanted..
“People in New Zealand bowl houses all the time, whereas you can’t really do that in the UK, so you end up working with constraints,” says Ross.
“We didn’t have to compromise, which was great,” says Mary.
The result is a striking contemporary house that makes the most of the wonderful views and also ticks off a long list of must-have features on the couple’s wishlist, like ample storage.
Ross and Mary wanted an ideal family home — they have two sons, Otto and Rafe — but at the same time one that felt like an upmarket apartment.
“We used to have an apartment in Canary Wharf, London, and we wanted the house to have the same kind of feeling,” says Mary, who chose the crisp white dcor and paired with it with dark flooring.
The pair are not novices when it comes to renovating – they’d done two major renovations in the UK and a smaller one in Mission Bay. An Edwardian home they’d transformed in Forest Hill, London, had been showcased in the Guardian newspaper as the “wreck of the week” before Ross and Mary got their hands on it.
They loved that makeover so much that they imported many of the same fixtures, fittings and materials for the St Heliers house, like the American walnut for the island bench top in the kitchen, door handles, oak flooring and light fittings by acclaimed designer Tom Dixon.
Ross and Mary work well together to bring their ideas to fruition. Ross, who works in finance, came up with the layout of the house, before handing over his drawings to an architectural designer to produce the plans.
Mary is a stylist for high-end home staging company Exhibit One, so has a great eye for aesthetics.
“We both really love property and bringing houses back to life — or in this case, creating something brand new,” says Ross.
The open plan layout and generous use of windows and sliding glass doors frame the outlook to the harbour. The living, dining and kitchen space gets the best views, and there are two decks off to further enjoy them. The kitchen is not only visually appealing, with its white cabinetry and marbleeffect splashback, but practical and great to work in, thanks to plenty of work and storage space, including in the adjoining scullery. There is also a wine cellar.
As well as the living spaces, the main level also has three bedrooms — two of which get harbour views — a family bathroom and two large storage cupboards.
Ross and Mary reconfigured the spacious lower level so that there is now a generous double garage, a rumpus room, a laundry and office and a guest bedroom with en suite.
Sliding doors from the bedroom and rumpus room open out to a flat lawn where there would be plenty of room to put a pool.
One of the biggest changes they made was to put an extra level on top to house their master bedroom, en suite and walk-in wardrobe. Again, the views dominate, and it has been a lovely sanctuary.
Agent Richard Lyne says the house is a fantastic family home on a prized ridge location. “Ross and Mary have put their heart and soul into the house. Whoever buys it will get a stunning turnkey-ready home in a great location where all the hard work has been done.”