JULL BATHROOM | BEFORE + AFTERS

May 31, 2024

At Bibby + Brady our aim is to create homes that are a joy to be in. Not only because they look beautiful, but because the functionality of the design changes they way our clients live, making everything easier and more enjoyable. The most rewarding part of the process for us is to see our designs come to life and witness the transformation of the space and life for it's owners.

This is a bathroom we recently renovated as part of a larger home renovation. The room is used by the children of the house and guests.

The layout of the room actually worked well and by leaving the plumbing in the same place we saved time and money for our clients. We wanted a fresh look but one that was still relevant to the character of the villa, so we removed the wall tiles and clad the entire room in Hardie™ Groove lining. We retained a dado rail but took it much higher to line up with the top of the tiles in the shower.

We chose a soft blue paint colour and wrapped it over the walls, ceiling, the door and all the frames to create a soothing, calm space. It also helps to blur the lines in a small room where there are a lot of elements.

The vanity is a similar shade to the walls and by having a wall hung option with air underneath, it creates a more spacious feeling in the small room. A custom mirror runs up to the dado line, and the curved bottom edges of the mirror along with the wall lights add a nice softness to juxtapose the straight lines. Touches of pink and watermelon red are a beautiful contrast to the blue.

The bath tucks neatly into the left hand corner of the room and features a lovely curved right edge, which, again, adds a softness to the small room.

We removed the old shower box and created a new modern shower with simple custom made glass walls on two sides. Inside we chose tiles with an artisanal handmade effect with subtle undulation. A large recessed niches provide a spot for shampoo and soap, with a smaller one below handy for shaving legs.

Because we kept the room very tonal and calm, we could afford to have a bit of fun with the floor tiles. The terrazzo-look tiles combine all of the colours in the rooms - blue/green, pink, black and white.

Colour always plays a big part in our designs, even if it's a neutral palette. By saturating the room in this soft blue we've created a calm, welcoming space, and have been selective with the small bursts of visual stimulation.

Despite what's going on in the world right now, home should always be a place for respite, to relax and recharge. We would love to help you create this in your home. Our goal will always be to effortlessly blend functionality with aesthetics, and make a house feel like a home. If you’re interested in working with us you can fill out this form to tell us more about your project.

See more of this beautiful family home here.

Napier Hill Home Renovation

May 9, 2019

We’ve recently finished working with a fabulous client, helping her renovate her home on Napier Hill. Rachael had moved to Hawke’s Bay from Wellington with her two young children and bought a beautiful old character home. It had great bones and stunning views over the hill and out to sea, but the layout wasn’t quite right and the interiors were a bit tired. After working with Citrus Studio Architecture on the plan, Rachael hired local firm Davcon Construction to complete the renovation. It was Davcon director, Julian Davis, who recommended Rachael talk to us about her kitchen design. Jules knew we’d be able to guide her through all the tricky decisions regarding colours, bench tops, cabinet style, handles etc.

The old kitchen was completely removed and this space (above) has now been turned into a media room for games and movie watching. Walls came down and moved to create a much better flow and layout throughout the house, and the kitchen moved over into the old dining room.

After putting the design concept together for Rachael’s kitchen, we worked closely with our joiners, Sydaz, to bring the design to a reality. We’ve developed a great working relationship with the Sydaz team, so it was a really fun project to work on. Both Davcon and Sydaz have exceptional workmanship, it was amazing to watch both teams help bring our design to life.

Our initial idea was to have a beautiful soft sage green on the bottom cabinets, but to achieve this look with the cabinets painted in a two pot polyurethane was a slightly more expensive option. In the end we opted for a more cost-effective thermoform finish in textured limestone, which is essentially a soft white. We then put a beautiful light grey with a hint of green on the walls to bring in some tone while still keeping the space calm, light and airy.

We’re all in love with the bench top we chose. It’s an engineered stone with a textured matt finish. It features a white background with velvety grey swirls and smaller specks of dark grey. Dael took Rachael out to the Archant warehouse in Hastings where they could view the actual slab of stone. This enables our clients a much better idea of how their bench will look, although we always start by showing them a small sample square. Carrying the stone up the wall as an up-stand was the finishing touch - we love it.

You can see from the progress shot (below) that we put a pull-out pantry and integrated fridge along the wall to the right of the main kitchen. There was nothing we can do with that wall in-between, as behind that is the powder room. Positioning the kitchen island long ways helped to connect everything…

But what really succeeded to connect and ‘zone’ the kitchen area was the wall panelling we asked Davcon to create. It absolutely worked with the style of the home, and wrapping it along the wall between the two pantries, and over on the opposite wall, clearly marked the kitchen area from the adjoining dining area.

The media room, where the old kitchen used to be, is off the kitchen, and we love the sneaky peek of the deep blue walls against the soft grey/green walls in front.

media room re-gibbed and ready for it’s transformation.

The entrance, kitchen and dining room have had new flooring put down. Rachael came home from Hutchinsons with a selection she had chosen and we helped her narrow it down to these boards, which look fantastic. These were the sorts of questions we helped Rachael tackle throughout the reno, another was which way to lay the boards. We would usually recommend running the wood from the front door straight to the back of the house, but the front door sits at the side of the house (to the left of the dining room entrance above). So, although the boards run across the entrance, they then lead your eye down to the beautiful big doors and view at the back of the house.

Rachael already had her dining table, chairs and rug. We sourced the pendant lighting for the kitchen and dining room, helped with art placement, and the colour to paint the fireplace. We sourced the kitchen handles from Archant and the chopping board, bowls and jugs are all ours.

The narrow double doors in the living room (above) were removed and an opening was made on the other side of the fireplace for easier access from the front door and kitchen through to the rest of the house. Large sliding doors were put in (below) to take advantage of the view and the light.

With new carpet and freshly painted walls, Rachael just asked us to help her choose a new sofa, coffee table, side table, and pendant light. We had this sofa custom made for her by one of our NZ furniture manufacturers. They’re made in New Zealand, and the quality and workmanship is superb, so it will last her a long, long time. To keep the cost down slightly, we chose a hardwearing but more cost-effective fabric in a gorgeous deep teal. The large coffee table is the perfect scale for the sofa, and the double layer is handy - you can pop baskets for storage on the bottom layer, or spare cushions. We also had new curtains made in a beautiful soft grey linen blend.

Rachael’s bedroom has these lovely character features, but we helped give it a mini makeover with a new wall colour, new curtains, and a new window seat squab.

The wall colour almost glows it’s so warm and gorgeous. It’s a dusty umber and ashen red toned neutral. OK, it’s pink, but it’s such a sophisticated colour that feels serene and restful in the master bedroom. The linen hydrangea cushions (below) we had custom made - all available to purchase from us.

Directly opposite the master bedroom is the tiny powder room. With no natural light this space would’ve looked flat if we painted it white, so we chose another soft, pretty colour.

The family bathroom was created from scratch in the old entrance area. A large space, we created wall-to-wall storage down one end to house the laundry as well as an extra cupboard for the mop, broom etc. I say “we created it”, but clearly Davcon did all the hard work…

And then Sydaz did a fantastic job creating all of the cabinetry. We chose the tiles from Tile Space, and used HardieGroove™ on the walls to add subtle texture.

The children’s bedrooms also only required mini makeovers. In Rachael’s son’s room it was choosing a colour that he would love, and also one that would grow with him into his teens. Also a cool new window squab so he could enjoy his epic view - lucky kid - and new bedding!

In Rachael’s daughter’s room we opted for a warm, happy colour scheme to add a bit of fun and interest. We kept the colour to the bottom half of the walls, and mixed it up with some different coloured bedding.

And here she is… Rachael was one of our most favourite clients and a joy to work with. We were so impressed with the way she managed a massive renovation with two young children, whilst holding down a very important, full-time job. No matter how smoothly everything goes, renovations are often still stressful, just because of the disruption they cause to your life. But this one was well worth it! The other reason we love Rachael is that she listened to us, trusted us, and followed through with everything we suggested. This is always the best outcome, so thanks Rach, and thank you for allowing us to share your beautiful home. x

Favourite Space | Kelly Davis

January 15, 2018

It's great to be able to kick off 2018 with one of our 'favourite space' posts, and we know you're going to love this one belonging to Kelly Davis. Kelly and her husband, Julian (or Jules as Kelly calls him), own Davcon, a building company specialising in high quality new homes, home alterations, and commercial work throughout Hawke's Bay.

Kelly and Jules worked with architect, Graeme Weaver, when it came to building their own family home in the Esk Hills two years ago, which they share with their three young sons, Louis (10 yrs), and twins, Felix and Rocco (9 yrs).

Kelly's favourite space is her 'mustard room', a living room which she likes to call her own. A feminine space where she encourages children not to venture. With beautiful views to the outdoors, it enjoys the last of the day's sun, and is cosy in the cooler months with the help of the very cool concrete fireplace.

Although feminine, the room also has an edginess to it with it's bold mustard carpet and dark walls. Kelly always knew she wanted this room when they started the design, but her main fear was that it would end up looking like a bumblebee. With the help of two of her friends, Hannah and Ana, who also have great design sense, Kelly chose a charcoal paint colour to team with the carpet. The strong contrast is then softened with Chesterfield-style sofas, a Chiang Mai coffee table, and layers of cushions, candles, flowers and accessories.

Time for our Q&A's so we can get to know Kelly a little better...

Tell us about your favourite space, and what you most love about it?

I love my “mustard room” because it’s quite a feminine space, which surprises me when it has such bold colours. But with a house full of boys (even the cat’s male) I wanted a gentle, feminine area somewhere in the house, and it has evolved into that. I love having fresh flowers, lighting a candle, and just hanging out in it whenever I get the chance. It’s a “no wrestling zone”. 😊

What’s your favourite time of the day?

I love it in the afternoon when I’ve picked the kids up from school. If we have no after-school activities, I often go into the mustard room, as it’s the sunny part of the house at that time, and fold the washing!

A morning yoga class straight after the school drop-off is also a lovely time of day.

Who or what inspires you?

I love people who march to the beat of their own drum, whether it’s artistically or musically. People who just have that inner knowledge that what they’re doing is right for them, so they just go about doing their thing 100% authentically.

What are you reading/listening to right now?

When I don’t get sucked down the Facebook/Instagram rabbit warren, I’m slowly reading Brene Brown’s “Braving the Wilderness” – I love the research she’s done on ‘Vulnerability’; and our current bookclub book is a Maisie Dobbs' mystery (I think I’m on Chapter 2 - lol).

I'm listening to my kids; but I also love Imagine Dragons and have “Thunder” on repeat at the moment.

Sweet or savoury?

Savoury – cheese & crackers over dessert any day.

Favourite drink?

My brother Casey made espresso martinis on Christmas day that were a bit decadent.

Favourite thing/item you own?

The baby grand my cousin gave me is a great love and I am so grateful to him for giving it to me, but my friends might say the mustard carpet because they know I’m a bit precious about it! I invited people to a New Year’s Eve party but told them in the invite they weren’t allowed to eat or drink on my mustard carpet, and a friend cheekily replied, ‘unless the food is of the yellow variety, as in pineapple or papaya!’.

Kelly knew there wasn't the space for a seperate music room in their plans, so she had Graeme Weaver include a nook in her front living room especially for her piano.

Top of your wish list for your home?

A lot of landscaping! Along with a pool and some outdoor furniture to go with it.

Thank you so much Kelly and Jules for allowing us into your amazing home and letting us share a little piece of it. To all our readers, make sure you check out some of Davcon's other projects if you're looking for a first rate building team.

Kelly's mustard room was truely special, but quite frankly the whole house is incredible. We couldn't resist showing you a sneak peek of another of our favourite rooms - the dining room which overlooks Esk Valley...

The cat was also super cute! He co-ordinated beautifully with the mustard room, but was quite partial to the large green rug in the other living room.

Let's finish with a quick tip... we love a large rug to ground furniture and help zone a space. A cost-effective solution for this is to get a piece of carpet cut to the right size and have the edges bound, as Kelly has done here. Also, if you're not brave enough to carpet your room in mustard (or olive green), a large rug is a great alternative.