The Designer's Home

Step into the home of Rangiora-based interior designer, Andrea Robertson, and it feels almost tropical. Bright, white wood panelling meets wallpaper with lush green leaves and pops of red colour. A high ceiling is punctuated with a ceiling rose and a clear glass lightshade and beside a wooden bookshelf sits a large, leafy houseplant. 

Words: Pattie Mason Images: Dorothy McLennan

“This is Fiji, it’s my happy place, it’s what I see when I wake up in the morning,” says Andrea. It’s also a testament to her own hard work – she made all the wood panelling herself with her “bare hands and a drop saw.”

When Andrea and her husband, John, first saw this 1935 house, five years ago, it was dark, damp and the roof leaked. But they saw the potential and bought it anyway. The first thing they did was to clear away some of the large trees outside to let the light in. 

Then water started to come through the light fixtures in the ceiling – "and that was the point," says Andrea, when they really did wonder if they’d done the right thing. They replaced the roof, revamped the kitchen, replaced the windows with double-glazed white aluminium frames. And clearly they did do the right thing – this modern villa is now picture perfect.  

The hallway leads into a large, open plan living, dining, kitchen area with areas of white and sea blue walls that blend perfectly. It feels new and old – a modern villa with a beachy vibe. There’s no doubting this is a character home – with its beautiful ceiling roses, high ceilings and detailed skirting boards. White kitchen cabinetry contrasts with warm wooden shelves and period look floor tiles and the area is separated by a large island. 

In one corner a seriously solid, square wooden table is surrounded by banquette and two solid wooden benches. The table and benches were made by Loburn Furniture and the table is so heavy it had to be assembled on site.  It’s a cosy dining area with wooden panelling on the recessed walls behind. 

Over in the living area a chandelier of stag’s antlers hangs below the ceiling rose and an old metal filing cabinet functions as a coffee table. Comfortable couches and a built-in window seat, that Andrea uses all the time, congregate around a log burner backed by white painted brickwork. 

The open space is huge, “it’s a great party house,” says Andrea. But her careful eye and talent for design ensure that the separate areas also feel comfortable and cosy in their own right and walls are punctuated with the lush green of various houseplants. 

“I am always changing things,” says Andrea. “I make my own drapes and I like to recover headboards. Then because of my work I’m always kind of thinking about design and looking for things and sometimes I find things that I want myself.”

But whilst she might change up the dressing there are key pieces that she lists amongst her favourites – her Nan’s china cabinet and a well-laid out drinks trolley that has an air of the 1960s Mad Men about it but comes from a popular chain store. "If husband John had to save one item from the home it would be her Nan’s rocking chair" she says. 

"The house is still a work in progress" says Andrea, "the next plan is to revamp the laundry area." But you get the feeling this is a home that will always have changing elements – as an interior designer she clearly loves to experiment in her own home. The one thing that seems sure is that it will always look amazing.