The feel good factor

From the Resene/Your Home and Garden Colour Home Awards Competition - 2012/2013 Grand Winner

Architectural designer Amiria Kiddle’s confident use of colour caught our eye.

The macrocarpa exterior is stained in Resene Woodsman Jarrah Tree.

Bold colour reigns supreme in this retro-feel home in Havelock North. The interior colour scheme, designed by architectural designer Amiria Kiddle for the home of her parents Ian and Winifred Kiddle, was chosen from the Resene Style Pasifika range.

Judges Your Home and Garden editor Leanne Moore and Resene’s Karen Warman said it was refreshing to see such a vibrant interior colour story. “Colour is such a personal thing. What I like about this home is that the Kiddles have not shied away from using strong colours,” says Leanne.

Exterior wood detail and inside lounge.
Right: Opposite Amiria Kiddle on the front deck. The window seat in the lounge is painted in Resene Coconut Crab, helping to define the space within the large room. The neutral shade is Resene Pink Night. The rainbow effect on the wall is a reflection from a glass louvre window. “Bright colour offsets all the timber in the house really well”.

Design details

The Kiddle family were all involved in choosing the colours. “We came up with the brief together, which was to be bold with colour,” says Amiria. “Bright colour offsets all the timber in the house really well.” She made the selection of colours, then got the green light to go ahead from her parents.

The Kiddles renovated in 2011, making significant changes to plans architect John Scott drew up in 1986 (the original home was a timber frame stucco built in 1940).

Right: A David Trubridge lightshade acts as a centrepiece in the high-stud living area. The rug was made by spinner and weaver Islay Anderson from Avondale, Auckland. Left: The main bedroom is painted in cool blues Resene Lagoon Spray and Resene ‘Blue Lagoon’. “These were chosen to counteract the warm temperature of the room,” says Amiria.

Colour tips

Timber is used liberally in the Kiddle home, acting as a thread that ties the warm colours (red, orange and purple) and cool tones (light blue and dark blue) together.

To get a better idea of what colours will look like, use the Resene Swatch Library at Resene ColorShops and view A4 swatches of the colours together. This will make it easier to imagine the final finish, rather than looking at colour charts. The library includes the Resene Style Pasifika palette.

Right: A feature wall is painted in Resene Frangipani. Inset above The window seat in the kitchen dining area also features Resene Orange Wood. The painting is by Palmerston North artist Horowai Le Par. Left: The main bedroom is painted in cool blues. Get the look with Resene Blue Lagoon.

Colour tricks

Choosing colours from the same range ensures the tones will match and the shades will look good together. “Mum’s mantra is that it doesn’t matter if colours are supposed to ‘go’ together if the tones are the same,” says Amiria.

The double-height space of the lounge features Polynesian-inspired trusses and a wall lined with diagonal macrocarpa boards. The Okoume plywood panels are finished with Resene Aquaclear and provide a foil to the bright colours.

If you’re planning to use bold colours on your walls, consider having more neutral furniture and furnishings – that way the wall colours won’t be competing with the rest of the room.