Project posted by Kareen Durbin
Durbin House
Our hebe bush (a native plant) recently died but we are enjoying what remains as an arrangement & loving this vintage lace.
We decided against ripping out the old kitchen, instead just restoring a stainless steal bench-top as it would have had originally & making the minor practical addition of a tiled splash-back.
We have added shelving throughout using selvaged native timber from either this house, or properties close by.
This pounemu (greenstone pendant) was gifted pre travelling in Europe years ago as a signifier of home.
An ever evolving & revolving array of art & antiques - this is a current iteration.
Initially being inspired by the very geometric form of the house, we responded with incorporating more hard edges, but have lately been softening with additions of feminine & romantic elements.
The kitchen is partially walled - enough so that you don't need to look at the dishes while relaxing in the lounge!
This day-bed is a piece of peasant furniture made from native timbre we recently refurbished (Checkered cushions are created from vintage denim remnants).
Sun-filled by day, with the addition of the cozy fireplace, the dog is not the only one who likes to laze around in here...
This wall was painted one Sunday using leftover paint sitting around in the garage.
Guy Bolongaro, Gravity Begins at Home, 2021 - a Pictures for Palestine fundraiser
This gestural painted element contributed to us winning the Resene Colour Home Award 2023. People react as if it was such a bold move, but it was a low cost, low commitment interior intervention, & we encourage others to be playful too.
A favourite print that has moved with use through multiple homes, this photo is by a friend known since school, photo journalist Ruth Mcdowall.
The glass door is our entrance & so our home welcomes you with full immersion blue. State housing builds like this typically have poky hallways. The darker tone emphasises this sense of contraction leading you towards the light filled space beyond & making it feel comparatively expansive.
This artwork from the 70's was recently found tucked away in the loft space of a little local community gallery. They only charged us $20!
Tonally swinging from navy to cobalt to more of a purple hue depending on the time of day, season & direction you are moving in.
Much of the bathroom is original but again, we couldn't resist adding some tiles around the bath / shower. The house is small, so elements like the tiles match between kitchen & bathroom, we have the same curtin fabric throughout & there are numerous other repetitions to encourage flow & overall cohesion.
Just using tiles we found second hand, the white ended up being high gloss, the black is matt. We would have gone with something more consistent if purchasing new, but actually love the unintended outcome more. The figure is from a first international trip when 16 (to Kenya), & although most treasures collected while travelling are no longer with us, this one remains.
Our daughters bedroom has a sunshine ceiling for good vibes what ever the weather!
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From Kareen Durbin
Through the 40's & 50's the governments in Aotearoa, New Zealand built a large volume of small & simple social housing, some of these dwellings eventually making their way into private ownership when national budgets needed a bit of a top up. Characterised by their lack of ornamentation & with a reputation for sturdy construction, former state homes such as this offer a bit of a blank canvas. And so our humble home has become a site for experimenting with space optimisation & colour at scale, success being measured by the level of surprise / joy experienced by those encountering the interior for the first time + our ongoing love of living here too of course!