A home around a door

They carved their story into a 90-year-old church door and proceeded to build the house around it. On the apex of the 45° pitched roof they carved Totara Maori-Viking-like finials coated in Resene Governor Bay. The porch and window box butynol roofs are lit up with Resene Corn, along with matching workshop and back doors. Resene Baltic Sea covers the white guttering.

Oregon beams were stained Resene Earth and the exterior pergolas are Resene Crowshead stain. The dining room table is built from Rimu and Totara, coated in Resene polyurethane – it still has embedded some of their son’s homework.

Twenty years later, after returning from a two-year assignment in the US, they launched into a decade of colour, adding feature walls of Resene Whiskey Sour in the lounge to match the curtains, Resene Chetwode Blue and half Resene Tulip Tree in the dining room and kitchen. Passage cupboards are finished in Resene Waikawa Grey, Resene Ship Cove and Resene Echo Blue.

Their son’s room sports a wall of Resene Fruit Salad and the kitchen doors are Resene Observatory.

The workshop is painted in nine Resene colours using up paint from earlier projects plus brick coloured paving paint for the floor.

In recent times Resene Pelorous, Resene Viking and Resene Spray became their bedroom wardrobe doors. The spare room was decked out in Resene Grandis, Resene Texas Rose, Resene Sea Buckthorn and Resene Putty. A Resene Orient feature wall offsets a family painting.

Last year the garage doors were painted in Resene Toast, and the giant 18 in Resene Sazerac.

While watching ‘The Brokenwood Mysteries’ TV series they glimpsed a turquoise door which sparked a frenzy of bright door painting – the ensuite door was finished in beautifully rich Resene Pelorous, the laundry and their son’s room in Resene Carpe Diem, the master bedroom in Resene Allports and the spare bedroom in Resene Tangerine. The bathroom has a Latin look with Resene Smitten and Resene Torea Bay. Old raku faded fired pots were rejuvenated with Resene Wellywood and Resene Tangerine, then those colours combined to create a Mondrian. Their son’s wardrobe door in Resene Believe was picked out from his Marimekko curtains. The front door surrounds are outlined in Resene Moccaccino.

At full count there are 36 colours in this home. They have 80+ testpots, many of which have been used on the ‘sentinels’ standing guard out front.

And there’s still more to do – re-roofing, guttering, repairing ceilings, replacing skylights, showers and carpets.

The Wilson family love colour and enjoy experimenting, and have a colour filled house to enjoy.