A pile of housework

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Sam Gray's mother shed a few tears when she first saw her daughter's newly purchased home. They were not tears of joy, but rather distress at the massive renovation project Gray and her friend and business partner Linz Ariell had bought into.

The pair bought the house together in 1989 because they each wanted their own home but neither could service a mortgage alone. The 245sq m villa had been split into four flats and once had a reputation as a party house in Auckland's Mt Eden.

The previous owners had tried to restore it to a more conventional home, but Gray thinks they ran out of energy. The backs of doors featured fluorescent skull art and some interior walls were missing, while doorways had been created with a chainsaw. "The house has been a massive project and labour of love," says Gray. "Had we had any experience renovating we probably wouldn't have gone near it." The friends split the house into two flats, renting one out and living with flatmates in the other. Gray also began working with Ariell on his men's clothing label, Marvel.

Not long after they bought the house, Gray met Chris Sainsbury, who became her partner, and Ariell moved into the downstairs flat. Sainsbury, a builder, has worked tirelessly at restoring the home. In the first 10 years, the projects had involved sorting out basics like the plumbing and wiring, re-piling, replacing rotten joinery, painting and re-roofing as well as putting in a new kitchen upstairs. "We would save up for an impending project, get it done and then regroup for the next one," says Gray. "We have always had a complementary approach to renovating. Chris is definitely the practical one, I am on ideas and helping while Linz looks after budgets and bill paying."

Having the downstairs as a separate flat for Ariell has been handy over the years, especially when Gray and Sainsbury had their wooden floors polished. The couple, with son Johnny, now 17, moved downstairs until the work was finished. The house is still far from being complete, with plans to renovate the bathrooms, add a built-in wardrobe to the master bedroom and build a deck off the kitchen to make the most of the north-facing aspect. "With this house there is no start or finish," says Gray.

"We have lived here through all the building, although there were a few times when I would have been happy to move out for a bit. "There are many rooms still to work on and some that we did years ago that need fresh coats of paint, but the bones of the house are so wonderful that we don't mind at all."

Style tips

Plan ahead: If you want to live in your house while you renovate, you need to finish the major jobs first to make the house safe.

Bit by bit: By tackling one room at a time you can break up a huge job into smaller pieces and contain the disruption to one part of the house.

Beware trends: Design fads are appealing but make sure they suit your home, your budget and your lifestyle.

* Leanne Moore is the editor of Your Home & Garden. See the latest issue, on sale now, for more achievable home ideas.