Resene Half Bianca Resene Cinder Above: It took Emma a while to settle on her preferred shade of white, but she kept coming back to Resene Half Bianca, which is used throughout the house, aside from the bedrooms, including the kitchen cabinetry, walls, trim and ceilings. Opposite: The other tough colour choice was the kitchen island. Emma knew she wanted it almost black but not too black, with a touch of blue while not being too blue. She found what she was looking for in Resene Cinder. W ith two little ones and another on the way, Emma and Henry faced an all too familiar problem. They were rapidly outgrowing their cute three-bedroom traditional 1930s bungalow in the heart of Auckland’s popular Pt. Chevalier neighbourhood. The house didn’t even have a bathtub and storage space was virtually non-existent, aside from a garage, a tiny cupboard-sized laundry and a single wardrobe. Something had to give. What the property did have was a spacious yet under-utilised backyard, sunken from the rest of the house and accessible only by some stairs off a small rear deck. However, by employing some creative problem solving by architect Michael Cooper, it presented an opportunity for the family to stay and renovate rather than having to move away from their beloved Pt Chev. Recognising the potential that the backyard offered, Michael’s plan raised it a metre. A large, double-gabled extension was then added to the rear of the house, allowing for a stunning new open plan living, dining and kitchen area. Connected to the original house by hallway stairs, the new extension sits at a lower level to meet the newly-raised lawn for a seamless indoor/ outdoor flow through an expansive wraparound deck. “It was really important to me that the renovation kept a seamless bungalow look,” says Emma, who doesn’t have a taste for the look of mixing old with new. “I wanted it to flow and I wanted that timeless bungalow look and feel, but with a lot of storage.” top tip Remember to also protect timber surfaces to keep them looking good. Clear finishes are ideal. Use Resene Aquaclear for walls and ceilings and Resene Qristal ClearFloor for flooring. Michael’s new design created storage in spades, with ingenious solutions scattered throughout the house that make use of ceiling and wall cavities and the addition of built-in window seats. Emma, who loves to cook, now has a separate scullery kitchen. And, with three young children, there is now an all- important separate laundry. The most dramatic feature of the new open plan kitchen/dining/living space is the double-gable ceiling which gives the whole area a loftiness while still maintaining its intimacy and comfort. “That’s the advantage of it,” says Michael. “The double-gable allows you to keep the scale of the space more residential. If you went with a full-width single gable, it can get a bit cathedral-like.” Emma and Henry were on board with the idea after seeing another local property Michael had designed. The decision allowed for the creation of an outdoor room that benefits from the same elegant gabled ceiling and can be entered through the French doors off the back of the living room. The space feels like the very definition of that perfect indoor/outdoor flow which many of us yearn for. “The outdoor room has ended up being one of my favourite things about the property,” says Emma. “It was just gold over winter, and the kids can play in the shade in summer. You can be outdoors and have the doors open all year round.” One of Emma’s other favourite parts of the renovation is the kitchen island bench, painted in Closing the gap between bungalow and backyard made a world of difference. 21 20 feature house