Labour of love

Quedley house interior. Photo / Your Home & Garden.

Like many first home buyers, Becky Quedley had a good idea of what she wanted in a house, but not the budget to realise that dream.

She and her ex-husband had already made several unsuccessful attempts at buying a home when her mother spotted a bungalow for sale in Auckland's Green Bay.

"The house was actually originally from [central Auckland suburb] Kingsland and was moved here in 1954," says Quedly. "All the cabinets, cupboards and some of the walls were constructed from remnants of other houses. Some had handwritten addresses on them for site delivery. The owner must have been a builder."

The home had other unique features, such as a sunroom lined with an orange particle board-like material and a green vinyl ceiling from the 1950s.

They started by renovating the bedrooms and lounge and then made some changes to the kitchen. The walls of each room had to be stripped back, removing layers of wallpaper that had been painted over before they could be replastered. The sagging master bedroom ceiling was replaced, and the original 1920s cornice matched to the remainder of the house.

Work halted during Quedly's divorce. But when Andrew McGill and Quedly got together they tackled the kitchen lighting, wall colours and new windows. "We also transformed the hall," says McGill, "which meant a lot of time spent stripping, plastering and sanding."

Despite having stripped layers of wallpaper from the hallway, the couple decided to wallpaper again, choosing a bold black and white print that makes an elegant statement in the hallway and the new bathroom. The black and white design won because it was a classic colour palette that could be updated with different furnishings.

An old friend, a builder, took charge of anything structural. The old aluminium kitchen window was replaced by a timber sliding version, and then work began on the sunroom, laundry and bathroom.

Closing off the original entry to the bathroom at the end of the hallway created space for open shelving, where Quedly stores her books and treasured collectables.

"I love old things with a story," she says. Her collections are mainly from the art deco era and she has a passion for Crown Lynn ceramics dating back to the 1940s.

With the renovation complete, Quedly says the house is now the ideal backdrop for her vintage-themed wedding to McGill in October. "We're having the photographs taken here, so all our hard work will be on show."

STYLE TIPS

Inner warmth: "After living in the house for a few years with white walls, I knew I wanted colours that felt warm and inviting and encouraged you to sit and relax," says Quedly.

Small changes: "I recently wallpapered the fireplace in a floral print," she says. "There was nothing wrong with the paint but I felt like giving the lounge a lift."

Try, try again: "Our first colour choice was grey. After spending late nights painting, we discovered it would scratch off at the slightest touch," she says. "Also in the light it looked really blue! We spent a week stripping every little bit off, kitchen drawers and cupboards included. We shed tears of frustration."

Leanne Moore is the editor of Your Home & Garden magazine. See the latest issue for the full story on this home and other ideas for your place.