Taupaki Project and STICKS + STONES showroom

The clients have a beautiful rural property in Taupaki with stunning countryside and city views beyond. The had done a lot of the exterior structural finishing details themselves and brought in assistance to finish the interiors off. They have overseas visitors and kids coming from France to stay each year so it was important that the bedroom spaces were comfortable for long staying guests.

For the main guest bedroom, the client wanted a hotel luxe feel for her guests while still feeling connected to the rest of the home. This room has plenty of natural light and its own private deck so could easily accommodate a darker hue. Resene Dark Side was selected for the feature wall pared back with a velvet studded headboard in similar tones.

A second bedroom, for son Dion and girlfriend Zoe, needed to be a sanctuary for them, a home away from home. It was a surprise for when they came home – and a much loved surprise when revealed. The room is finished in Resene Blue Smoke with vertical board for architectural interest. The colours of the linens draw inspiration from the outside views of the dense trees and countryside which is also reflected in the artwork piece the bed.

In the spare bedroom, an old bed was lovingly restored and set the scene and colour palette for the room. The bedroom was painted in Resene Innocence.

In all three rooms, the feature hue was teamed with Resene Alabaster, all painted using Resene Zylone Sheen.

The clients were delighted with the project: “We built our house with cedar, concrete, schist and macrocarpa inside and out. After living in the house for a couple of years we asked Kate if she could help complement these wonderful materials. Kate helped create a unique and wonderful finished look that our house deserves. She has a great eye for detail and is highly skilled in recognising our tastes and included the environment that we are surrounded with on our lifestyle block. She gave us confidence to step out of our comfort zone and try different colours and design ideas, such as shelving, artwork, mirrors, curtains, bedding, feature walls and more! She has a vast knowledge of products and sources items I would never have known existed which makes this journey all the more worthwhile. We get many compliments from our friends and family who visit and are extremely proud of how our lovely home; we’re so pleased Kate has been involved to make this happen!”

Showroom

Setting up your own home as a showroom so clients can engage, touch and see the quality and finishing they can enjoy on their own projects. The STICKS + STONES team have recently collaborated together as a boutique design and construction business. Clients love that they can take care of the whole process from design, building consents, project management through to the completion of the build.

The kitchen had very little natural light so to keep things light and bright Resene Alabaster was selected teamed with timber and marble prints to give a sense of warmth and texture. This room featured on the cover of Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly magazine, who wrote “It’s what’s on the inside that counts. Small finishing touches can make a big difference when it comes to designing your dream kitchen, as we see in this gorgeous room from STICKS + STONES Boutique Design + Construction. Not only does it look fantastic outside, but thanks to some clever design and technology, it’s incredibly functional too. We love the gorgeous use of natural materials in this kitchen, from the warm timber cabinetry and shelves to the cool Carrara marble in the pantry. It’s set in a striking honeycomb tile and is a great way of adding texture to a usually staid space. This kitchen has many practical features that make entertaining a breeze. The design is very organic, with the room flowing into the rest of the house.”

This south facing guest room doesn’t get a lot of sunshine so needing to be made warmer and cosy to welcome guests. The starting point and inspiration for this room was the dried floral reef above the bed. Walls were painted on the bottom part with Resene Just Right with Resene Alabaster on the top portion so that the pink didn’t overpower the space. This complements the American Oak timber feature wall.

Architectural specifier and build/paint: STICKS + STONES Boutique Design + Construction
Photographer: Emma MacDonald, Fotographicnz
Project: Resene Total Colour Awards 2020