Replacing damaged weatherboards

There are some damaged weatherboards in our porch area that are being replaced.

I assumed that the entire length of the weatherboard would be replaced, but no, the joiner is able to just cut out the damaged part, and insert a new part.

I made that sound easy... it's a bit more complicated than that!

First of all, finding matching weatherboards is challenging. Not just getting the right size (as mentioned previously, there are lots of different sizes of rusticated weatherboards). But getting the same depth/contour of the scalloped bit.

The joiner went to 3 different salvage/reclamation yards before finding anything similar.

And even then he had to shave 2mm off the scalloped bit to make it consistent with what's already on our house.

Above: the new weatherboard pieces from the reclamation yard have been screwed into place.

After screwing the new weatherboard pieces into place, the joiner then applied filler to make them look smooth and consistent.

After: Taking this "after" photo was surprisingly difficult, as I couldn't actually spot the joins! Nice workmanship :)

The weatherboards are now undercoated, so that they're ready to be painted.

But there's a bit more work to be done on our porch, bay front and stairs before the painters come.

Above: this is what the wall looks like, minus weatherboards. There's some kind of sacking material between the wood and what's probably the gib board.

The new front steps

The joiner installed the steps yesterday.

The next job is for him to make the surrounds - and while he's here, he's going to do other jobs to tidy up the front entrance.

The steps have been undercoated to help protect them from the rain that's due this weekend.



Above: our new front steps!

Adding new villa fretwork

Our villa was built in quite a plain style - it doesn't have the fancy fretwork that many other houses of this era possess.

So while we're sprucing up the front, we're going to add a few bits and pieces to give it a bit more character, and make it look more "villa-ey". It should give our house a bit more street appeal.

Above: The exterior of our villa is quite plain at present.

I did a good amount of research as to what I wanted; a bit of the research was online, but most of it was done by walking round the area with Mr Kiwi (and our dog) to see what we liked and didn't like.

We decided that we wanted to add a little bit of character, but not go overboard: we don't want the house looking too twee and frilly.

As the builders are now hard at work, I made haste to Bungalow and Villa in Morningside.

Even though they sell everything online now, I wanted to see the items for real before purchasing.

I was expecting a small shop, but it turned out to be huge showroom and workshop! They have just about everything you need for renovating a period home.

I bought:

• Large brackets x 4 (for the bay front)
• Teardrops x 2 (for the bay front)
• Small brackets x 2 (to go above the doorway)
• Finials x 2 (1 for the bay front; 1 for the garage)

These all come in treated paint quality pine, so our next job is to undercoat them and paint them in white enamel.

Above: The fretwork I purchased from Bungalow & Villa now needs to be undercoated and painted.

When I brought these home and showed Mr Kiwi, he exclaimed "wow, our house is actually going to look like a villa!"

Yesss! I can't wait to see what these will look like when installed onto the front of our house!

Project cost: $$ (materials only)

New wooden steps for our villa

When I first started writing this blog I thought I'd be able to write about each project in a complete article. But I've realised that home renovations don't work in such a neat and orderly manner!

Instead, you start one project which gives you an opportunity to do something else. And in the meantime, quite a few projects are under way till the original project is completed.

Therefore this blog is very much a diary rather than a neat set of articles. If I refer to an ongoing project I'll include links to related posts as much as possible.

So back to the subject of steps.

I've previously mentioned that the wooden steps leading to our front door are rather rotten. Well, they haven't improved over time!

Above: our poor front steps have seen better days! It's not just aesthetic: the wooden boards are actually rotten, and supported underneath by concrete blocks.

Above: Even the strategically placed flower pots struggled to disguise the state of our front steps!

Mr Kiwi has arranged for a builder friend to rebuild the steps. And that work started last week.

The stairs have been removed, and a new set is being manufactured off site.

In the meantime, we have a big gaping hole at the front of our house!

Above: The dog is having a great time watching the builders (she loves power tools etc.)

While the front steps are being replaced, we're also taking the opportunity to re-vamp the front of the house slightly.

Some of the weatherboards need replacing; and the joinery on the bay front tidied up. And as our villa doesn't have much fretwork or other details that villas of this era usually do, we'll be adding some.

Plus, we don't like the current colour scheme, so will be painting the front of the house in different colours. (Painting the rest of the house is a future project - it's a big job, and the front of the house is the priority at this stage!)

More on all of that will be posted here at a later date.

Choosing exterior paint colours for our villa

I thought that choosing exterior paint colours for our villa would be fun.

I was wrong.

I've already been to Resene at least 5 times for test points and advice, and we still haven't finalised our choices!

I'm finding that the paler colours look far darker on the villa weatherboards than they do on the paint chart; and the dark colours (for the trim) look paler in reality than on the paint charts. And not all the test pot colours resemble the colour charts. Grrrr!

Which explains why part of our house looks a bit rainbowtastic!

Above: trying paint test pot colours. (The photo shows just how badly our poor house is in need of a lick of paint!)

In fairness, Resene do have great resources available.

For starters, they've got a guide to Heritage paint colours, for people wanting to use authentic paint colours that were in use in the era when their house was built. The eras are:

• 1840 to 1870: Early Colonial
• 1870s to 1890s: Mid Victorian
• 1890 to 1914: Late Victorian and Edwardian
• 1914 to 1945: Dominion

More information on heritage colour schemes is on the Resene website.

A surveyor reckoned our house was built in 1916, making it "Dominion" era, but according to the Resene information it's more likely that our house is Late Victorian/Edwardian in style... maybe our surveyor was a couple of years out.

These heritage paint colours are, um, quite strong, and not to my taste.

So for us, that's nice information, but we'll be choosing something a little more contemporary!

Above: Resene's Heritage Colour Palette.

In one Resene store I also found this A4 sheet where you can colour in a villa piccie. (I've only seen this at one Resene shop - I've never spied it at any others, so if you're wanting one it might be worth your while phoning around.)

Resene have a similar tool on their website too, where you can use your computer to "paint" a picture of your house, but personally I find that one a bit too fiddly!

Above: "Create Your Own Colour Scheme" sheet from Resene.

Notes on NZ Paint for UK Expats

• Resene is arguably the most popular paint brand in New Zealand (not Dulux).
• Paint here seems VERY pricey compared to the UK: both exterior and interior paint.
• Paint in NZ has to be super durable to cope with the hard UV light conditions in this part of the world. Which probably explains why it's more expensive.
  
• Kiwis don't understand the British terminology of "emulsion" and "gloss". Instead of "emulsion" (water-based paint) they say "acrylic". And instead of "gloss" (oil-based paint) they call it "enamel" - which is available in a variety of finishes: gloss, semi-gloss, matte, etc.

I hope I've got that right... I'm still learning!

Oh, the number of times I've gotten strange looks by asking for "emulsion" paint etc... and the people employed in NZ DIY stores aren't that helpful to chicks who don't use the proper (NZ) terms for things! I hope to spare you that embarrassment and belittlement!

A gallery of villas

Choosing a look for your villa

Someone suggested that before committing to any exterior work that we should have a look around suburbs where there are lots of villas to get some ideas and inspiration.

So off we went, with camera in hand to record the ideas for a "look book".

The first thing we noticed was how many different styles of villa there are! Just finding single bay fronted villas which resemble ours was trickier than we first thought.

To supplement this legwork, looking through online real estate listings or magazines (especially the Property Press) can help too.

It's certainly helped to identify some definite likes and dislikes, though I suspect there's a lot more research ahead while we renovate!

Here are some pics I found online: