Karen Burge and husband Martin Skinner's design savvy illustrates how you can transform a property without having to re-invent it.
Martin is a city-based spatial designer, and Karen is co-owner of Mt Albert homewares, gift and clothing store Good Thing.
A contributing writer to glossy house magazines inthe past, she grew up visually aware, re-arranging her bedroom, painting up her builder dad's empty nail boxes, and dyeing her mum's good sheets to make duvet covers.
Karen says: "Martin and I both have a visual eye and love our home to look beautiful, which can sometimes be a challenge as we have four children."
Wanting another project after having completely revamped their long-held Mt Albert home, they bought in this no-exit street they admired backing onto Fowlds Park early last year.
They recognised the opportunity to modernise the 1930s bungalow on a level site that has light streaming inside and a rear outlook on to the established park's big trees.
Karen says: "When we sit in the lounge or out on the deck we are looking out at green and sky. It's a really calming outlook and relaxing place to be in this mad rush of life."
She says: "The location here is fantastic; a bit of a Bermuda triangle really in between Western Springs, Mt Albert, Morningside and St Lukes.
"We're literally a minute off the Northwestern motorway but you'd have no idea as we're protected from motorway noise by the Western Springs ridge."
Children Louis (14), Ruby (12), Jesse (11) and Felix (8) love having a gate into the park. Karen says: "It has playing fields, netball courts, a fitness trail and playground and lots of paths for biking and scootering."
They knew what they loved about the weatherboard home such as great columns on its front porch and front windows incorporating subtle clear leadlights.
But they weren't afraid to farewell decor that didn't suit their tastes, painting out oppressively dark ceiling beams, laying new carpet in some areas while ripping it up in others to polish floors.
They've added a low front fence and updated grounds front and back with Karen's preference for structure through hedging and repeat planting.
A wide driveway runs down one side of the home to rear grounds incorporating a man-cave-worthy big double garage with single carport attached.
The couple has repainted the formerly mint green home outside and in.
A wide entrance hall introduces neutral decor able to accommodate a diversity of furnishing tastes, including their favoured meld of contemporary and vintage, accented by lots of plants.
Three bedrooms, an updated bathroom and good storage front the home.
Karen and Martin's favourite spot is the rear living-dining spread, bi-fold doors extending it out to the patio and stepped deck.
They removed its internal corridor-sun porch and opened up and renovated the formerly avocado-green kitchen. It now has composite stone benches, new appliances and grey Artedomus tiles.
Karen says: "We both love the lounge for the views, the sun - and in winter the gas fire, which is so warm and efficient."
They've installed nifty atomic-style lounge-dining lights and framed the gas fire beautifully with tiles within a white-painted vintage surround.
Karen rates this home's upgraded separate laundry (with adjoining toilet) as incredibly handy for their soccer-mad household.
They bought here anticipating staying long-term, only changing tack when the opportunity arose to buy the dream home they'd unsuccessfully attempted to purchase in the past.
