Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: A Big Black Barn Fits the Bill for a New Adventure
An Auckland couple leaves the city behind in search of the quiet life, building an elegant barn to call home
A hankering for adventure prompted a professional Auckland couple to abandon the big city to build an elegant black ‘barn’ in the North Island’s wine country. The house is called ‘Ingleside’, named after an ancestral home in England. Their decision to ‘go country’ wasn’t so much a long-held dream, but rather an epiphany for 30-year Auckland residents Rick and Carolyn Thompson. “We love Auckland but it got to the point that, because of traffic, it became a major logistical exercise when you wanted to do anything or go anywhere,” says Carolyn. One daughter wasn’t convinced; she suggested they see a psychologist before selling up.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Professional couple Rick and Carolyn Thompson
Location: Martinborough, North Island, New Zealand
Size: 483 square metres, 4 bedrooms, 2-plus bathrooms
Designer: Julie Richardson-Smith, Customkit
Year built: 2014
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Professional couple Rick and Carolyn Thompson
Location: Martinborough, North Island, New Zealand
Size: 483 square metres, 4 bedrooms, 2-plus bathrooms
Designer: Julie Richardson-Smith, Customkit
Year built: 2014
Both this great room and the guest toilet that features a fun wine-box wallpaper from Resene’s Exposed collection are Carolyn’s favourites.
The couple went to their first meeting with Customkit armed with armfuls of magazine clippings and images, illustrating the various design styles and spaces they loved and could envisage in their new home.
Customkit designer Julie Richardson-Smith helped them through the process, explaining the layouts possible within the barn style.
The Thompsons had a clear idea about the colours, materials and fittings to be used in the house. They started with the palest paint colours in the living area, then moved to deeper, yet still subtle, tones in the more intimate areas such as the entry hall and bedrooms.
The couple went to their first meeting with Customkit armed with armfuls of magazine clippings and images, illustrating the various design styles and spaces they loved and could envisage in their new home.
Customkit designer Julie Richardson-Smith helped them through the process, explaining the layouts possible within the barn style.
The Thompsons had a clear idea about the colours, materials and fittings to be used in the house. They started with the palest paint colours in the living area, then moved to deeper, yet still subtle, tones in the more intimate areas such as the entry hall and bedrooms.
Carolyn also loves the 22-metre-long entry pavilion, with its moody walls painted in Resene ‘Oilskin’.
“I love the drama of the light that the long, narrow, gun-style windows throw onto the polished concrete floors and the slithers of views of the landscape that they offer up from outside,” she says. The cosy entry is a stark contrast to the expanse of the grand hall through the barn-style sliding doors. “I love the element of surprise,” Carolyn says.
“I love the drama of the light that the long, narrow, gun-style windows throw onto the polished concrete floors and the slithers of views of the landscape that they offer up from outside,” she says. The cosy entry is a stark contrast to the expanse of the grand hall through the barn-style sliding doors. “I love the element of surprise,” Carolyn says.
The living area includes their ‘dream’ kitchen and spacious scullery. The unusual rough-sawn timber front to the island bench is made from timber salvaged from an old cottage.
A substantial dining area sits inside the double doors separating the entry pavilion from the great room.
The couple wanted the house to allow the beauty of the undulating rural setting to be the dominant feature, so chose a recessive colour, Resene ‘Bokara Grey’, for the exterior. The CoolColour paint reflects the sun’s heat to help prevent heat stress on both the paint and the cladding.
A grand beamed pergola enhances outdoor living. The timber for the pergola is actually old power poles, sourced through the local lines company when timber poles were replaced with concrete ones. The couple wanted a home where they could spread out, entertain friends and also accommodate their children and families when they visited from abroad.
There are also plenty of bedrooms to accommodate visitors, like this one painted in Resene ‘Half Hilary’.
And another softly schemed bedroom, painted in Resene ‘Half Duck Egg Blue’.
Red accents sparkle against an otherwise muted scheme, and a panelled headboard wall. Says Carolyn: “Build what you love. Don’t be a slave to fashion or someone else’s taste. There is no right or wrong in decorating. It’s your house and as long as you love it then that’s great.”
As for any family misgivings, the children spent Christmas staying in their parent’s new haunt and the whole family is now on board. How could they not be?
TELL US
What do you love about this house? Has it sparked dreams of your own escape from the city? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
As for any family misgivings, the children spent Christmas staying in their parent’s new haunt and the whole family is now on board. How could they not be?
TELL US
What do you love about this house? Has it sparked dreams of your own escape from the city? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
Their main reason for choosing Customkit to design and build the home was the company’s reputation for creating open spaces with plenty of height using LVL (laminated veneer lumber) portals. These are more commonly used in buildings such as sheds, barns, community halls and commercial outlets that Customkit also designs and supplies.
The Thompson house has a central, open-plan living area with high, vaulted ceilings and timber beams. The couple didn’t want the interior colour in this grand room to fight with the view of the countryside through their windows and bi-fold doors, so they chose a pale white-grey, Resene ‘Titania’. They matched the window joinery to this colour so it wouldn’t stand out.