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Award-winner celebrates

A designer home of the 1960s, 189 Mangorei Rd in New Plymouth is now a revitalised residence that can look towards the 2060s.

Success in 2020’s Taranaki Registered Master Builders House of the Year Awards testifies to its timeless appeal. The renovation work by Hubbard Building won a Gold Award in its Renovation up to $500,000 category; won the Taranaki Supreme Renovation; and the Lifestyle Award for kitchen design.

Credit has to go to owner Matt for his commitment to a major renovation faithful to the original 1960s design. ‘‘It was a labour of love,’’ he admits. ‘‘It was a cool house that deserved to be looked after.’’

Matt lived across the city in 2015 when the Mangorei Rd house was advertised for sale. ‘‘I thought ‘That looks interesting’ and had a look at it. A week later, the agent rang and asked if I was interested and I said ‘Yes, I might buy it actually’.’’

Its history explains the home’s designer origins and unique appeal. It was built in 1963 by Laurie and Jill Cleland, who shared in the Cleland family’s building and timber businesses begun by Laurie’s grandfather in 1916. It’s no surprise Laurie’s commitment to quality and innovation resulted in the eyecatching, modernist, Palm Springs-influenced design of his new home.

Matt appreciated the unusual ‘butterfly’ roof design: two wings rise from a central gutter and spiky outriggers support the wide eaves. The master bedroom cantilevered over the driveway on concrete buttresses creates a carport advantage and a sheltered entry to the house.

The elevated setting added its own attraction, with views across the city to a sea horizon. ‘‘It’s a grandstand view,’’ Matt says. ‘‘I can see ships coming and going. This is a magic spot.’’

Planes add an aerial aspect to the outlook. ‘‘The ATRs fly through on their approach to the airport; you can see the Catalina out there as well, and the Yaks.’’

Sunsets that turn the horizon into a glowing artwork complete the visual appeal.

Not everything was perfect, however. Elements of the original design were failing, and the eastern roof needed replacing.

‘‘That started the whole process,’’ Matt explains. ‘‘It was a skillion roof with exposed beams that spanned 6m and used experimental products.’’

Compressed-straw insulation sprayed with asbestos was definitely experimental and hadn’t handled a leaking roof in later years. ‘‘There were mushrooms growing in the ceiling; not ideal,’’ Matt recalls.

The fix in 2018 involved the dramatic task of demolishing the eastern end of the house; more than 100sqm of the four-bedroom home’s almost 260sqm total. That involved taking living areas down to floor level and renewing them to meet or exceed modern building codes.

And that’s where the awardwinning effort kicked in.

Matt engaged designer Michael Mansvelt to plan the new structure and help detail its finish, while he took on the project management. The result is a celebration of the home’s era, while incorporating the latest technology and energy efficiency.

The major changes are inspirational.

The original ceiling beams are still a feature in the living area, but they have been finely finished and placed as a vertical screen between the kitchen and lounge spaces. There’s still a fireplace, but it’s not a central feature in a Hinuera stone frame now; it’s been rebuilt at the end of the room, faced up to the ceiling with polished silver Travertine stone and incorporating a wide Escea gas-fire insert.

Wood-framed windows remain a feature, rising almost to the 3.5m height of the raked ceilings, and letting in a wealth of sun. ‘‘This is one of the lightest houses I’ve lived in,’’ Matt says.

It’s also very energy efficient. Those window sashes have been renewed and completed with the best double glazing available, including low-E glass filled with extra-efficient argon gas. The sashes now have special flexible seals that make the windows as airtight as aluminium-framed alternatives. ‘‘The sashes are so high that we put remotecontrolled window motors on them,’’ Matt notes.

The window frames are deeper than usual, with 140mm studs used in the exterior walls rather than 90mm, so there is much more insulation in those walls. The ceilings are also deeper and filled with 200mm of insulation.

The combination of extra insulation, new double glazing, and the wealth of all-day sun that pours in, makes the living areas very cosy, Matt says.

The original interior wall at the western end of the room was lined with rimu tongue-andgroove boards, but previous owners had painted them over. Matt opted for painted plasterboard instead, but when the old carpet was lifted, he found beautiful tawa floor

boards and had them sanded and sealed so the warmth and visual appeal of a timber grain remained a feature.

Complementing the floors, New Plymouth’s Elite Kitchens crafted the new kitchen in a rich tawa veneer, contrasting the cabinetry’s natural look with the metallic finish of mosaic tiles that line the walls and form the splashback. The island bench, topped with stainless steel, has a quirky designer touch, borrowing its styling from those cantilevered buttresses supporting the master bedroom.

The kitchen enjoys natural light through a large skylight above the main work space.

Smaller touches add to the overall effect.

Matt liked the geometric pattern of steel balustrading around the stairs down to the basement level and had his builders line the stairwell walls in veneered plywood cut in patterns to complement the steelwork and add a negative-detail finish. The accuracy needed to cut those patterns tested the builders, he recalls.

Another skylight is now above the stairwell.

To the side of the kitchen an outside door opens to nowhere at present; Matt intended to build a deck here to soak up morning sun and give access to a planned pool below. They are now projects for owners to consider.

The timber of the new back door is rimu from the old ceilings recycled during the renovation. The retro look of reeded glass finishes the door – a choice seen also in the glass panel in the gate on the deck that secures the steps down to the driveway.

This home celebrates two looks, Matt says, opening the internal door by the stairwell. The living areas highlight the designer approach and all the features that make them a special space.

Stepping through the door is a little like stepping back in time with an original, conventional 1960s presentation.

Through here is beautifully maintained rimu doors and trim, curved chrome door handles, and scotia borders. Matt points out the radiused finish of wall corners in the hall and master bedroom, traditional pelmets above the bedroom windows, and a wallpaper feature wall in one bedroom.

One standout room has been carefully refreshed: the master bedroom that sits out over the driveway. It’s larger than it was originally; Matt ‘‘stole’’ another bedroom to create the walkthrough wardrobe and ensuite.

The vanity in the ensuite is topped with rimu recycled from other ceilings, and the kitchen mosaic tiles are repeated in the shower area and above the vanity, complementing Travertine stone floor and wall tiles.

Bedroom walls are finished with textured blue glasscloth wallpaper, and gold-plated taps in the ensuite pick up on the rich colours of the mosaic tiles. ‘‘I wanted quite a lush look in here,’’ Matt says.

The third bedroom was a smaller study or office, but Matt pushed the wall out a metre into the deck area to make it a goodsized bedroom.

Downstairs, there’s a foyer welcome and a spare room that could be an office or another bedroom. Next to that is a potential fifth bedroom and its ensuite facilities that repeat design features of the upstairs ensuite.

The internal-access basement garage includes laundry services and a kitchenette facility that recognises Matt’s use of this space as a casual living and hobby area. He’s even relocated the original woodburner here from upstairs to make it more comfortable.

Prospective buyers will have to admire the home they see here today. The marriage of quality designer beginnings and a sympathetic, imaginative renovation has produced a unique residence that will be remain relevant for decades to come.

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2021-10-16T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-10-16T07:00:00.0000000Z

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