Good bones

Samantha moved into a 1930s bungalow that required a lot of love and attention but seemed to have 'good bones'. While it needed a lot of work, it didn't require a lot of specialised work as, in keeping with the era, the original house wasn't pretty or ornate so there was no need to search for original or replica fittings. This gave Samantha the perfect challenge that could be undertaken as and when time and money permitted.

A solo mother of two young children and a dog, making the house safe and liveable was the first priority. The family moved in once a wall had been knocked out making a very small lounge and dining room into one larger space.

A professional builder was hired to reline almost every wall in the house in paperfaced plasterboard to replace the original sarking and plaster finish. It was then Samantha's job to paint ceilings and decorate each room. In between all this activity, she sanded and polyurethaned the entire floor area of the house.

One of the top priorities was to decorate her 8-year-old daughter's room. She had never had her very own room so this was a very special time for her. After much discussion they settled on a loose theme that was girlish, without being babyish, and practical. The only stipulation Samantha's daughter had was that it had to have a purple feature wall! In complete agreement the room was painted in Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in hues of Resene Amour on the walls with a feature wall of Resene Plum and Resene Half Pearl Lusta on the ceiling.

Next to be tackled was the lounge area in a hue of Resene Grain Brown on the walls and Resene White Rock on the ceiling, including the addition of a Resene Livid Brown feature wall. Funnily enough, it wasn't until after it was complete that Samantha realised that chocolate was fashionable and becoming the new Black - oh well!!

Girl's bedroom walls	Girl's bedroom feature wall	Ceiling
Resene Amour	Resene Plum	Resene Half Pearl Lusta
Lounge walls	Lounge feature wall	Lounge ceiling
Resene Grain Brown	Resene Livid Brown	Resene White Rock

Decorating inspiration gallery
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