Houzz Tours
Interior Design
At Home With ... Interior Design Blogger Charlotte Minty
Tell us what you think about this upstairs apartment in Wellington for your chance to win a $50 gift voucher
Charlotte Minty is a interior designer and blogger based in Wellington, New Zealand. She has settled into a home, in the suburb of Brooklyn, where she can practise what she preaches by showing off her great skills in interior decoration. Minty is inspired by simplistic Scandinavian design, which has transpired into her second-floor apartment. With an impressive book collection, unique handmade furniture and eye-catching knick-knacks, this designer has created a sanctuary where she can be inspired by her surroundings.
COMMENT TO WIN
To celebrate our favourite Australian bloggers and their homes, we’ll be asking each blogger in this series to choose a giveaway gift. All you have to do to enter is comment on why you love this house. The winner of Charlotte’s chosen prize – a $50 voucher from Citta Design – has now been announced. Well done, gerriems.
Blogger’s Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Charlotte Minty and her partner Craig
Location: Upstairs in a two-level building in Brooklyn
Size: 68 square metres (2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom)
Photos by Neil Pardington
COMMENT TO WIN
To celebrate our favourite Australian bloggers and their homes, we’ll be asking each blogger in this series to choose a giveaway gift. All you have to do to enter is comment on why you love this house. The winner of Charlotte’s chosen prize – a $50 voucher from Citta Design – has now been announced. Well done, gerriems.
Blogger’s Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Charlotte Minty and her partner Craig
Location: Upstairs in a two-level building in Brooklyn
Size: 68 square metres (2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom)
Photos by Neil Pardington
What do you love to do on Sunday afternoons?
Going to a movie or having downtime with the family.
What are your favourite rooms in the house and why?
The living room/kitchen. My partner recently moved in with me so the living room was the main space where we purchased furniture together and made it ours. Also, we love our books so we rather fancy our bookshelves, which are the main feature in the living room.
Going to a movie or having downtime with the family.
What are your favourite rooms in the house and why?
The living room/kitchen. My partner recently moved in with me so the living room was the main space where we purchased furniture together and made it ours. Also, we love our books so we rather fancy our bookshelves, which are the main feature in the living room.
What’s your next big project?
I have many interior design projects on the go in my office and I enjoy them all. There is talk of an overseas project, which would be exciting for me as I love to travel.
I have many interior design projects on the go in my office and I enjoy them all. There is talk of an overseas project, which would be exciting for me as I love to travel.
What makes you happiest at home?
When the house has been cleaned and tidied, the bed has been re-made with fresh linen, and there are flowers sitting in a vase. It’s the end of the day and I’m sharing the sofa with my partner, having a laugh – bliss.
When the house has been cleaned and tidied, the bed has been re-made with fresh linen, and there are flowers sitting in a vase. It’s the end of the day and I’m sharing the sofa with my partner, having a laugh – bliss.
How would you describe your decorating style?
Simple, contemporary, fresh and classic with a few quirky touches.
Simple, contemporary, fresh and classic with a few quirky touches.
Photography artwork: Neil Pardington; Artemide Nesso table lamp: ECC
Describe your home in five words.
Calm, relaxed, comfortable, simple and compact.
Calm, relaxed, comfortable, simple and compact.
To me, great design is…
Durability – it should stand up robustly and remain in good condition. Utility – it should be useful and function well for the people using it. Beauty – it should delight people and raise their spirits.
Anglepoise Type 75 desk lamp: ECC
Durability – it should stand up robustly and remain in good condition. Utility – it should be useful and function well for the people using it. Beauty – it should delight people and raise their spirits.
Anglepoise Type 75 desk lamp: ECC
What’s your signature dish?
My signature dish keeps changing depending on my mood – lately it has been what I call sushi salad. However, my fallback comfort dish is spaghetti bolognese, an absolute childhood favourite.
My signature dish keeps changing depending on my mood – lately it has been what I call sushi salad. However, my fallback comfort dish is spaghetti bolognese, an absolute childhood favourite.
You will not see [blank] in any house of mine.
Hmmm, I know what I like and there are quite a few things I could put here, however, it might come back and bite me later on! Never say never.
Hmmm, I know what I like and there are quite a few things I could put here, however, it might come back and bite me later on! Never say never.
What’s your proudest DIY achievement?
My house. When we were doing the renovations about five years ago, I had a builder doing the main building work from Monday to Friday for about six months. Meanwhile, my father and I worked together on the building every weekend doing the things that we could do to keep within budget. This included doing the demolition, filling the skip, trips to the tip, repairing the timber windows, painting the exterior, landscaping and planting the garden. It was lovely bonding with my father and I am proud of the result.
My house. When we were doing the renovations about five years ago, I had a builder doing the main building work from Monday to Friday for about six months. Meanwhile, my father and I worked together on the building every weekend doing the things that we could do to keep within budget. This included doing the demolition, filling the skip, trips to the tip, repairing the timber windows, painting the exterior, landscaping and planting the garden. It was lovely bonding with my father and I am proud of the result.
Where do you love to write and what could you not write without?
I prefer to write in my office as that is where I can focus. I usually have a cup of tea sitting next to me. I couldn’t write without my laptop and a cup of tea.
The chair pictured belonged to Minty’s late grandmother, which she has since reupholstered in silver grey velvet. “My grandmother also embroidered the ‘C’ that hangs by my desk, and my desk was made by my dad. We got two filing cabinets and made a desk top from leftover MDF,” says Minty.
Cushion: Shut the Front Door
I prefer to write in my office as that is where I can focus. I usually have a cup of tea sitting next to me. I couldn’t write without my laptop and a cup of tea.
The chair pictured belonged to Minty’s late grandmother, which she has since reupholstered in silver grey velvet. “My grandmother also embroidered the ‘C’ that hangs by my desk, and my desk was made by my dad. We got two filing cabinets and made a desk top from leftover MDF,” says Minty.
Cushion: Shut the Front Door
What is your biggest decorating fail?
I work hard to make sure there are no fails on my job! However, when I was painting the exterior of this building, I painted the lower level in what I thought was a lovely grey. However, when I crossed the road to have a look, it looked really drab and flat, which is disheartening after hours of painting! This encouraged me to go darker and, of course, it looked instantly better.
The next big decorating trend is…
Mixing styles and quality design/products that last the distance.
I work hard to make sure there are no fails on my job! However, when I was painting the exterior of this building, I painted the lower level in what I thought was a lovely grey. However, when I crossed the road to have a look, it looked really drab and flat, which is disheartening after hours of painting! This encouraged me to go darker and, of course, it looked instantly better.
The next big decorating trend is…
Mixing styles and quality design/products that last the distance.
Visit Charlotte’s blog at http://charlotteminty.blogspot.com.au/
To celebrate our favourite Australian and New Zealand bloggers and their homes, we’ll be asking each blogger in this series to choose a giveaway gift. All you have to do to enter is comment on why you love this house. The winner of Charlotte’s chosen prize – a $50 voucher from Citta Design – has now been announced. Well done, gerriems.
If you’d like to submit your blog for this series, follow the instructions found here.
MORE
At Home With … Interior Design Blogger Lee Dewsnap
At Home With … Kristie Castagna From Elements at Home
At Home With … Rachael Honner From Hip Brown Home Blog
To celebrate our favourite Australian and New Zealand bloggers and their homes, we’ll be asking each blogger in this series to choose a giveaway gift. All you have to do to enter is comment on why you love this house. The winner of Charlotte’s chosen prize – a $50 voucher from Citta Design – has now been announced. Well done, gerriems.
If you’d like to submit your blog for this series, follow the instructions found here.
MORE
At Home With … Interior Design Blogger Lee Dewsnap
At Home With … Kristie Castagna From Elements at Home
At Home With … Rachael Honner From Hip Brown Home Blog
Firstly, what do we need to know about your blog?
The blog is an extension of my interior design business, Charlotte Minty Interior Design. I started it in June 2009 and use it as a visual diary, showing all the images and inspirations that I come across while working as an interior designer. I believe that when you give away ideas and inspirations, you make room for new ones! My clients use the blog as a design resource to find inspiring images as well as to get a sense of who I am as a designer. This helps them get a taste of me before actually meeting me.
A consistent subject on my blog is Scandinavian design. My great grandmother was Swedish and I grew up with an architect father and creative mother who loved classic Scandinavian design, so this has rubbed off on me.
How long have you lived in this house for and how did you and your house meet?
I have been in this house for eight years. It’s a two-storey building with two apartments so my partner and I live upstairs while downstairs has been rented out to the same tenant for the last four years. When I bought this building, they were one-bedroom apartments and worse for wear. Since then, the building has been extended and renovated, so that each apartment has two bedrooms now, and the upstairs one also has a separate office for my business.
When I first visited my future home, it ticked all the boxes – a home and income, located close to the city, within the right price range and with the potential to be extended and renovated. I took my architect father along to have a look for the second visit and he approved. We made a plan right there to how we could extend and improve the property.