Ollivers Road Christchurch.

Achieving the sought-after character of a restored villa is no easy feat. In fact, we’d bet anyone who has ever been involved with a villa will know the unexpected and time-consuming difficulties which inevitably arise.

When we purchased Olliviers Rd, it needed a whole lot of TLC. Namely, new cladding, new roof, new windows, new bathroom, new kitchen and new carpet throughout.

To preserve the original feel of the 1913 building, while incorporating modern comforts and aesthetic features, we kept the beautiful high ceilings and added coving and colonial skirting to all the rooms. Outside, we kept the original timber weatherboards, adding full timber scribers and corners - without the aid of power tools. Our chosen colour palette, which we painted ourselves, receives a lot of compliments, as does the ways we preserved the heritage feel with a modern touch. It was a huge renovation, which we undertook in residence, an experience which gave James great insight into the challenges his clients will be facing in the same situation.