Messervy House For Sale

Matt and Kate Arnold discovered the Messervy House whilst on a walk down a quiet cul-de-sac in their hometown of Christchurch. After talking to it's owner, they learnt that it had been designed for her family in 1964 by architect Allan Mitchener, and she'd lived happily in it ever since. Matt and Kate kept in touch with Biddy Messervy, and when the time came for her to move out, they bought the house off her.

As only the second owners, Matt and Kate spent last year restoring Messervy House back to her former glory. They painted inside and out in the original colours, replaced the cork flooring and cracked windows, had new linen curtains made, re-wallpapered, and replaced the kitchen benchtop. Everything was carried out with the intention of maintaining the original design of the house, and using the original materials where possible.

Now that she's finished, Messervy House is on the market, and it's very important to Matt and Kate that her new owners are design enthusiasts who will fully appreciate her. Not only the highly imaginative design, but also the effort that has gone into her restoration. The house has a stream at the back with a footbridge connecting to Ilam fields and gardens, and it's a nice walk across the park to the University of Canterbury.

For more information about the house and how you can view and/or buy it, click here. I asked Matt a few questions about the restoration process, read on for his answers.

What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome?
Finding cork tiles. We hit a national shortage, nobody had them. Kate called almost every Bunnings in New Zealand and sniffed out anybody who had cork tiles stashed away. We scrounged together just enough by buying them in small packets from all over the country. We almost went down the route of parquet floors, but finally got the cork.

Tell me more about the wallpaper you used?
The house originally had wallpaper, which is slightly unusual for a modernist house, but it seemed to work. The old wallpaper was done for, it was torn, faded and stained, but finding a replacement was surprisingly difficult. Have you ever shopped for wallpaper? It's bewildering. We finally settled on a seagrass, but at the last minute we spotted the green arches designed by Claesson Koivisto Rune (architects we really admire) and we were away.

Do you have any advice to help people find the right architect or draftsman for their project?
Go straight to Michael O'Sullivan.

You've done such a fantastic job with this home, will you be taking on another restoration or renovation in the future?
I think we will. There are lots of these wonderful little houses in and around Christchurch designed in the 50s and 60s that are perhaps a little bit under-appreciated. And when they're made of concrete, like this one, they don't rot or leak, and all you need is some white paint and enthusiasm. I think with these types of places, the less you do the better, really.

photography: Sam Hartnett

I wish you luck Matt and Kate, and to all my readers... if you are interested in buying this beautiful home, or know someone who might be, get cracking! I have a feeling it may be snapped up quickly.

The Block Villa Wars | Laundry + Stairs Reveal

The contestants on The Block Villa Wars thought laundry and stairs week was going to be easy compared to past weeks, but it turned out to be a really tough one for most. Brooke wasn't happy when her laundry failed to be installed first, which put all her tradies behind schedule. She caused a bit of a stir by storming off the site, but came back composed. A mis-measure meant their hero piece (an American oak feature wall by their stairs) was too short, and their builders were forced to do some quick thinking to come up with a solution. Despite all this drama the pair finished the week with yet another win.

Brooke and Mitch: 1st place | 18 points

With an extra large space, Brooke and Mitch were able to add a small powder room next to their laundry, which is a definite bonus for buyers. The laundry space is clean and functional, but once again (in my opinion) lacking any kind of "wow".

I love American oak, so I do like the feature wall, even with the tacked on piece at the top. The stairway is clean and tidy, but screaming out for some beautiful art on the wall, don't you think?

Sarah and Minanne: 2nd equal place | 16.5 points

Bridesmaids again, the girls came equal second with Cat and Jeremy. I like that they used black marble tiles as their laundry splash back, which ties in with their main bathroom. Loads of bench space makes it very functional, but it's still a little underwhelming in terms of style and design flair.

Another wood feature on the stairs, but as Sarah and Minanne don't have as big a budget as Brooke and Mitch they had to use a more cost effective pine. It still looks great, and adds warmth and texture. Space at the top of the stairs has been turned into a study nook. It's a good thought to utilise the space, I just wonder whether you'd want to study or work in this particular spot. I'd rather have a beautifully styled console table with a piece of art that would make me smile every time I came up and down the stairs.

Cat and Jeremy: 2nd equal place | 16.5 points

These guys usually have a bit more flair than the others, and remain my favourites because of that. They certainly haven't gone crazy in their laundry either, but have some nice touches like the washing basket, the hooks on the wall, and the little space under the washing machine and dryer for shoes.

Cat and Jeremy also had room for a small bathroom, and I love the repetition of circles in their mirror and the artwork on the stairs. Love the choice of artwork (they've used art as a feature throughout their home), and the scale is great, it's nice to have something substantial as a focus in the stairway.

Jamie and Hayden: 3rd place | 15 points

You have to give them some credit - they are often coming in at the back of the pack, but each week they say that "this is their week", and they haven't been swayed from their black and white theme. The addition of a large fridge in the laundry will be appealing to buyers, and all four of the laundries are fantastic in acting as mudrooms where bags, shoes, sports gear etc can be stored before entering the rest of the house.

Jamie, acting as project manager, butted heads with her builder this week, but they managed to put their differences aside and finish all of their spaces.

All of the teams' spaces are functional, clean and tidy, but am I the only one wanting more?! I know budgets are tight for some teams, and the timing for all is insane, but everyone seems to playing very safe. Perhaps because Brooke and Mitch are winning continuously with their minimal look, the others teams are adopting this look too (?) I'm a big believer that small spaces like toilets and laundries should have personality too. Because you don't spend long periods of time in them, you can afford to be a bit adventurous - bring in wallpaper, pattern, colour, life. Maybe this week :)

Back To The Wall

Today I wanted to share with you the most amazing design company, Back To The Wall. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, they produce custom designed wallpaper murals for your home, office or commercial space.

With over 30 years experience in the print industry, owners and designers, Relda Frogley (below left) and Joanne Gray (below right) are passionate about all of their work. They design and print their murals on site, allowing them full control every step of the way.

The beauty of Back To The Wall is that you can tell Joanne and Relda the size of your wall and they will print your mural to fit exactly, so you're not paying for any excess. Printing their paper at 100cm widths (as opposed to standard wallpaper widths of 50-60cm) means you don't have as many joins, and they specialise in beautiful oversized images rather than repeat patterns.

There's a huge range of pre-designed murals and art prints to choose from. Email Joanne and Relda with your design choice and size requirements and they will provide you with a quote. The murals are easy to install yourself, or you can hire a professional wallpaper hanger to do the job.

If you want to customise a mural, that's not a problem. Jo is incredibly clever working with Photoshop, and she can tweak their existing designs, and alter colours to suit. Or perhaps you have a completely different vision in mind, discuss your ideas with the girls and they can help you with your own unique design.

There's something for everyone including a gorgeous range of kids' murals...

And beautiful work by contributing artists, Helen Bankers and Diana Watson.

Lastly, just in case you're not already totally inspired (I know I am!), your wallpaper doesn't need to be confined to the wall. Relda and Jo can create smaller pieces of art for the back of shelves, the front of your stairs, cabinet doors... let your imagination run wild!