Renovation wins over honeymoon

Taking on a drastic do-up despite having no renovation experience didn't daunt Darren and Kylie Stevens. In fact, the newlyweds were so keen to get into their first home 10 years ago that they sacrificed their overseas honeymoon.

"It was back in the days when you needed a large deposit before you could get a mortgage and, like any young couple, we were struggling to save enough money for that and just couldn't afford an overseas honeymoon as well," says Kylie.

With the money they had saved, the Stevens bought a dilapidated two-bedroom workers' cottage in the Auckland suburb of Beach Haven.

"It reeked from years of chain-smoking owners and hadn't been touched since the 1950s," says Darren.

"There were actually three layers of carpet, laid one on top of the other."

The couple could see the house's potential, especially as it had a basement that, with a little excavation, could provide another level of floor space. The cottage was structurally sound and ripping up the layers of carpet revealed wooden floorboards in great condition.

After they moved in, the Stevens threw ideas around until they came up with a plan — then Darren put his architectural draughting skills into action. The proposal they came up with called for an entire rebuild, which was planned room-by-room so they could remain in the home and complete jobs as money allowed.

A builder helped with the basic structural changes and tradesmen were called in for the plumbing and electrical work, but the Stevens did about 90 per cent of the manual labour. They got stuck in together after work, on weekends and during holidays. Excavating and building the downstairs rooms alone took close to four years to finish.

"We have lived here through it all, and having a couple of kids [sons Cooper and Millar] along the way definitely slowed things down," says Kylie.

"Next time we'd probably move out during the major renovations, but unfortunately it was a luxury we just couldn't afford."

But all that hard work has resulted in a stylish four-bedroom home with two bathrooms and two living areas. And they've had a lot of fun furnishing and decorating it.

Having finished their home, the Stevens are moving on — they need more space for their growing boys as well as another challenge to test their recently acquired renovation skills.

Style tips

Past and present: Keeping character features doesn't have to be at the cost of comfort. In the Stevens' bathroom they have updated an original clawfoot bath with bold colours and underfloor heating.

Seamless look: The Stevens sourced secondhand plastercast panels to match their original ceilings. Maintaining such details means any extensions or changes don't have the look of an add-on.

Web work: Use the internet to get rid of old building materials, furniture or belongings. You'll not only reap some money that can be put to other uses, but your cast-offs will be recycled instead of dumped.