SCHOOL ZONES:
Northcote Primary, Northcote Intermediate, Northcote College.
CONTACT:
Blair Haddow, Bayleys, 021 544 555.
For Sommer Wood and Jake Olsen, the interior spaces and bush views they could see in front of them told them everything they needed to know about how to turn the rest of this good house into something even better. Or so they thought.
By the time their two-stage renovation had ticked off every last detail, they'd learned that sometimes the best gems are there to be discovered during the process. In Sommer's case, that came when she pulled up the worn orange shagpile carpet that was part of the dark-brown decor throughout the kitchen and upstairs living area of her 1966 Modernist home that she'd bought in 2012.
When she saw the pristine native timber floors that had never seen the light of day since then, she thought "Jackpot -- they were just the most beautiful floors".
Jake's turn came a little later, a year or so after Sommer had partially renovated the house and rented it out, and some six months after they met following his return from working in London. During their second-stage renovations, he was in the garden clearing weeds when he uncovered the railway sleepers and bricks that were the original path down to what he has recreated as his newly planted shagpile-style lawn.
That discovery was "just brilliant", says Jake, a former junior international grand slam tennis player, who is now an investment adviser.
His find was as good as Sommer's timber floors, he recalls. "I wonder how many other houses there are out there with hidden treasures under the carpet."
Another delight with this joint part of the project was the way it bonded Sommer and Jake's parents who pitched in. Arriving with their collective enthusiasm and impressive building/engineering/planting skill sets, they were put to good use finishing off the inside. They also overhauled the garden which, from the upper deck, underpins elevated views beyond neighbouring bush to the Onepoto Domain, lake and playgrounds.
Image 1 of 6: This light and modern abode once sported orange shagpile and a dark, dated decor
Indoors, Sommer's father, Paul, a builder, and Jake worked together on the new balustrade of double-height 2in x 2in posts that screens the stairwell. Sommer liked the idea as a light, spacious alternative to the original dark closed-in panelling. Downstairs, small discreet magnets at each end of three of the downstairs palings mean they can be removed for access to storage under the stairs.
It was down here, too, that Sommer and Jake had the old carpet pulled up and new wood-look vinyl tiles laid to transform the room into an inviting fully-fledged media room. Next to it, a fifth bedroom overlooks the garden. Their laundry is located behind doors at the end of the main room.
Their choice of a white paint palette against the wood grain/mushroom-colour tones in the flooring has enhanced the original features including the big picture windows and the long ceiling beams. New aluminium sliding doors match their exterior balustrade. Similarly, fixed metal louvres across the front of the house replicate the form of the original upper timber louvres along the eastern side of the integrated carport.
For Sommer, an accountant, this renovation and the associated shopping trips has been her dream creative outlet, even in the garden. "It was such fun spitting out the bugs and getting covered in dirt. We loved every minute of it."
Recently engaged, Sommer and Jake are keen for a house project that is jointly theirs. That will likely mean leaving the street where Sommer's father, aunt and sister all live and which she describes as "a bit like a family compound".
"We've built our relationship as we've built this house but we're ready for our own house together," she says.
