If you bought a home with walls painted deep red, bright green and brilliant orange, you might be tempted to paint over them. Not Mike and Yuan. In fact, when they bought this very colourful house in Greenhithe, the only shade they changed was the neutral beige of the downstairs living rooms, instead opting for near-white Resene Quarter Joanna and Resene Double Joanna.

"The previous owners must have been very brave to use these colours," reflects Yuan. "I tend to like neutrals, but I actually love the coloured walls here, and the kids love them too. They are happy colours and they suit the sunny rooms."

Although they have lived here for nearly five years, Mike and Yuan have never wanted to change the bold wall colours. Instead, they have embraced them, choosing furniture, curtains and blinds to complement them.

How would you describe your interior design style? I like traditional furniture, especially antiques, but mixed with modern furniture and colours. I like neutral colours but I don't like boring houses. I think my home has got character.

Where did your inspiration come from? From the Middle East, China and India. I've got stuff from all of those places - I like them all mixed together.

What was the greatest success with your home interior? The formal lounge. I love the colours - especially the Resene Renegade feature wall - and the furniture and the antique pieces. My favourites are the coffee table, which looks Chinese but is from the Middle East, and the mirror above the fireplace, which is from Egypt. Everything goes well together in this room, I think.

What space in the house do you get your greatest satisfaction from? The formal lounge and the master bedroom. They are just "me" - they are everything that I like, because I picked everything in them. I love lying on the couch in the lounge and looking out of the window at the palm trees in the afternoon sun. It is so pretty.

What is your advice for someone trying to achieve a similar look? Make sure that everything ties together, and don't use too many colours in one room. Three colours in one room is enough - and that includes colours you use on the walls, in the furnishings, and so on.

What colours did you use? All of the downstairs rooms used to be a kind of beige-brown, but it looked quite dark, so we painted it white to make it brighter. The dining, kitchen and formal lounge are Resene Quarter Joanna, while the other rooms are Resene Double Joanna. The deep red wall in the formal lounge is Resene Renegade, which I love because it is elegant, warm and welcoming. The children's bedrooms are painted in yellow Resene Smiles, orange Resene Hi Jinx, green Resene Dizzy Lizzy and blue Resene Sports Star, all from the Resene KidzColour range. The exterior weatherboards are painted with Resene Pearl Lusta. The wallpapers were also from Resene.