b"feature gardensanctuarytheA landscape designer has found her peace in the gentle green space between bush and sea.Resene Resene ReseneFlax Paddock SeaweedI ts impossible to count the many different shades of green that appear in Claire Talbots garden. Its a kaleidoscope, the likes of which appear only on Resene colour charts. Painters looking to capture its essence would take their pick of Resene Breeze, Resene Flax, Resene Paddock and Resene Seaweedwith a peek-a-boo of Resene Smashing coming from the vibrant leucadendrons.Claires love of small surprises of colour flows from the outdoors in at The Black Box, her home located in The Sanctuary, an (aptly named) gated community five minutes from Mangawhai. Claire and her family have been visiting the area from Auckland for a decade. The Talbots spent four summers sharing a bach with friends, but after that, and with growing children (now 15, 13 and 10), it was time to find their own space. I knew when I first saw the land that it was right. It was a bare grassy patch, butOpposite: Claires Mangawhai home was designed the hills behind felt like a protective embrace. It was the perfect blank canvas forby Gerrad Hall and the exterior is stained in Resene landscape designer Claire, but first, she needed to choose a fellow artist to help herWoodsman Pitch Black. The dark colour allows the create her masterpiece. Luckily, my friend Gerrad Hall is an architect. We didnt wanthome to blend into the deep green landscape, the home to be a blot on the landscape. We wanted to take the time to make sure thewithout distracting the eye. Claire used a Resene angles and the aspects were right. CoolColour variant, which allows the dark colour to stay cooler even in summer.The exterior of The Black Box is board and batten, stained with Resene Woodsman Pitch Black. Black makes the greens pop, and merges seamlessly with the landscape,Above left: Claire came across this old door at a which was my key goal. I sat down with the house plans and drew lines off the homeconsignment shop and painted it herself using to create a grid. From there, it was about creating spaces and working within the rulesResene Lumbersider tinted to Resene Geronimo. The wisteria looks stunning against the bright of the golden ratio [a geometric equation that creates an 'aesthetically pleasing'Resene Geronimo paint, says Claire. The door shape]. I wanted something simple and low-maintenance with a small lawnmowingframe is Resene Woodsman Pitch Black.bill and room to hide the inevitable summer tents. Above top: Claire has a background in The gardens softness contrasts with the surrounding spiky manuka- and kanuka- management psychology, but studied landscape covered hills. Grasses drift in the often-prevalent wind, offering a soundtrack notdesign after she had children. She turned her hobby unlike that of the nearby surf. Its been a labour of love, with a fair amount of physicalinto a career launching Sculpt Gardens in 2016.labour thrown in for good measure. Claire estimates shes planted upwards of 500Above: Creating usable entertaining spaces is key to plants in the past four years, at an estimated cost of between $20,000 to $30,000. making the most of your outdoor living. The Cape Pops of colour peep through the grasses. Hardy South African plants such asCod chairs in Resene Double Spanish White are a proteas and leucadendrons add splashes of red, contrasting with the silvers andperfect place for a morning coffee (or evening wine).greens of reeds and grasses such as oi oi and a lomandra called Lime Tuff. ClairesReseneReseneResene Woodsmanfavourite is gaura, a hardy plant with small pink or white flowers that bloom for fiveSmashing Breeze Pitch Blackto six months. Im not a purist. I love natives, but they can lack colour and diversity. IReseneResene like to add some wow. Geronimo Double Spanish White72 73"