Delvene Morrissey takes a spin in Betsy, a 1920s Buick, borrowed from a guest who came to stay. The exterior of the house is painted in Resene Lumbersider in Resene Double Villa White, with accents of Resene Awash, a mid-blue on the windows, Resene Duck Egg Blue on sections of the balcony and the front fence, and Resene Jaguar, an almost black on the railing and sills. Front door in Resene Jaguar and Resene Duck Egg Blue. Window frames in Resene White enamel. “Once we had painted the exterior, we had loads of people saying that we’d uplifted our corner of the street, so that was great feedback to get.”. The roof awaits an update and will be painted blue this year – the colour is still being decided. “Exciting times ahead, and we have come to expect that with an old historic house, we will never be done, and there will always be fun and exciting things to do on the building, ” says homeowner, Delvene.

The recently completed bedroom features the ceiling and part of the walls in standout Resene Smoky Green with the remainder of the walls in Resene Double Villa White.“Resene paints are so easy to use giving great coverage meaning less coats required and going further with your money spent, they have such an extensive range of colours for all surfaces so we have used nothing else and they really are our go-to paint of choice,” Delvene says and as the couple are painters and decorators they know what they’re talking about. The couple added the panelling themselves.

The guest room – the Kereru room – has Resene Gecko on the side wall and Resene Double Black White on ceilings and above the dado line on the front wall, with Resene Gecko below the dado line. The dado trim and skirtings are in Resene Double Villa White. “We have changed a few room colours more than once, getting bolder and more daring each time – if we paint something and we don’t love it months later, we change it, and then we fall in love with it all over again. Our rooms are of a decent proportion, so we’re able to be bold in our choices and don’t feel like we have to stick to the blank white canvas that lots of people steer towards,” Delvene says.

“In our upstairs loft, I think I fell in love both with the colour and the name of the ceiling paint – who wouldn’t want to relax and unwind staring up at a ceiling with the paint colour of Resene Comfort Zone?” says Delvene.  The ceiling is partnered with Resene Biscotti on the walls and trims in Resene Double Villa White.

In the conservatory, now the heart of the home, Resene Ming on the side of the bench is paired with Resene Double Dutch White on windows and trims, Resene Double Villa White on the ceiling and Resene Duck Egg Blue on the side wall. When the Morrisseys bought the house just four years ago this was an unloved room, with a BBQ, church pew and drum kit as the only furniture and a non-descript colour scheme.  With the additon of paint they’ve turned it into an elegant space with a huge skylight as a focal point. Delvene loves the room for its windows looking on to nature.

The kitchen features Resene Spring Rain on the splashback, the island detailing and in the coal range alcove, with Resene Biscotti on the lower walls and Resene Double Villa White on the ceiling, upper walls and trim. “The floor is natural floorboards that we’ve hand-sanded to get rid of years of dirt and grime, but we’re still keen on them retaining the patina of over a hundred years of peoples footsteps and their histories and stories. We don’t want to hide the house’s past, we want to celebrate all of the lives it’s had, but make her beautiful in that celebration as well,” Delvene says. 

“I love having a nice bold wall or feature and then having a complementary tone for the remainder of the room, as anything that might be perceived as old fashioned in newer homes fits in perfectly with our house,” says Delvene. In the library sitting room Resene Noosa makes a bold statement on the walls, with Karen Walker Smoky Green glimpsed through the frosted glass doors.  The doors and trim are painted in Resene Double Villa White, with the alcove in the bold contrasting hue of Resene Norwester.

The scullery is painted in Resene Norwester, a San Francisco influenced blue, on the cupboard doors and panelling.  Resene Double Villa White is above the dado line. Throughout, these experienced painters and decorators have used the format, Lumbersider.”Lumbersider is such a durable paint that we’ve used that throughout, both interior and exterior. The age and style of the house means we have been able to be very bold and creative with our colour scheme and have a resulting huge colour palette through the home,” Delvene adds. Tiles from Tile Depot.