Change of perspective

Flow: The renovations created a warm and welcoming open-plan kitchen and family room. Photo / Supplied

When it comes to decorating, interior design consultant Jacqui Cross Turner believes in colour and constant change.

"I like using clear, bright colours and large, bold wallpaper patterns to add individual character," she says. "I don't like a static house. I need to be able to add art, colours and pattern to keep my home alive."

The canvas she has chosen to work her design magic on is a 1920s farmhouse villa she and her husband Geoff Turner bought in Otiake, North Otago, 14 years ago. Although it was built from locally quarried limestone, the house was designed in England and built to plan - meaning the living area was on the south side. As part of a major renovation completed 18 months ago, the couple rectified this by creating, on the north side, a warm and welcoming open-plan kitchen and family room with large, bi-fold windows that open to a walled courtyard with views of vineyards and mountains. A log burner with a limestone surround and a heat pump keep the home warm.

The villa's construction made renovations that little bit more difficult. The exterior and interior walls are limestone and each of the 10 rooms stands on individual foundations.

"We couldn't get under the house," says Cross Turner. "Instead, we had to lift the flooring and drill through the foundations to lay gas fittings for hot water heating and power for two heat pumps."

The Turners installed double glazing during the renovation and that meant installing new wooden joinery in order to keep the look of the original double-hung sash windows.

"It would have been much cheaper to do it in aluminium," says Cross Turner, "but to do so would have meant sacrificing much of the house's character."

Timber is a feature throughout the home - the original rimu tongue-and-groove ceiling has been kept in the lounge, which features a macrocarpa bookcase, kauri skirting boards and a hardwood railway sleeper for a fireplace mantel. An old office door from a fruit-packing shed makes an interesting talking point in its new life as a coffee table. The couple also had a 2.4m-long dining table made from recycled floorboards.

On the wall above the dining table are three round clocks in the Turner children's favourite colours - orange for Jacqui, aged 23, green for Sophie, 19, and blue for Tim, 17.

"One day," Jacqui says, "they may be in different parts of the world. I'll be able to look at their clocks, set in different time zones, and know when to ring them."

STYLE TIPS

Colour play: "My passion is colour - clear bright hues that play off each other or the juxtaposition of one colour against another, whether it might appear in wallpaper or fabric," says Cross Turner.

Comfort zone: She says she doesn't want to live in a house that is too precious. "Most of all, I want my home to be restful, a place to relax, curl up with a book or sit and talk."

Character forming: Natural materials such as wood, wool, cotton and stone give a home character. "There is a warmth and history to these materials that can't be achieved by most man-made products," Cross Turner says.

Leanne Moore is the editor of Your Home & Garden magazine. See the latest issue for the full story on this home and other ideas for your place.