An Edwardian Villa Restoration

Villa Restoration Auckland

This stunning character villa in Epsom had been showing signs of deterioration for a while when homeowners Graham and Sandra started looking for a renovation company that could restore it. The ceilings, bathrooms and kitchen were in particular need of renovation work and the couple also wanted to achieve better indoor/outdoor flow. They met with Jim Gleeson from Refresh Renovations and instantly felt comfortable working with him.

Villa renovation specifications

“We met quite a few people and when we came across Jim and the Refresh team we felt very comfortable. We knew, through doing other projects, it’s very important to look at that right communication, that right rapport with somebody - so that when you have challenges you can actually work through them.”

Graham and Sandra asked Jim to retain the villa’s Edwardian characteristics. Ornate ceiling roses were collapsing. A large one, in particular, was gradually being ripped out of the ceiling due to a large chandelier. The floor plan needed improving and wooden joinery on the deck was in need of repair work. Sandra and Graham wanted their bathrooms and kitchen to be modernised, and something needed to be done about their closed off sunroom which was rarely used.

“The main thing about this house is the amazing ceiling roses and the detailing on the ceilings - which I really wanted to keep”, says Sandra. “We needed someone who could actually find the right sub-contractors to do that work for us.”

We felt like Jim and Refresh were part of the family. Everything just came together for us. Checkout our old home & Villa renovations in Auckland Central

Carrying out the villa renovation

“There was a massive transformation in the bathrooms, from old and tired, to lovely modern tiled bathroom spaces.”, says Jim. “In the kitchen: it went from a pokey little corner kitchen that was quite dark, through to a very modern, large kitchen that brought in a lot of light.”

Throughout the renovation, Graham and Sandra kept their material choices local and easy to source. Much of the bathroom supplies were sourced through

“The kitchen, prior to the renovation, needed a lot more storage space. It needed updating as it wasn’t actually installed very well (I don’t think) in the very first place. So having Refresh come through and help with that and find the right people to help with the design was really good. I definitely had ideas that I wanted and products that I definitely wanted to use, which Jim and the team were really good at trying to accommodate. We got what we wanted, if not better than what I expected. I really love my kitchen”, smiles Sandra.

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Final thoughts

Graham agrees:

“When you look at the overall project and how it needed to be managed, because we weren’t always here - it was great. We felt like Jim and Refresh were part of the family. Everything just came together for us. If I had to do this again, I’d definitely pick up the phone and call Jim.”

2019 Winner of Registered Master Builders House of the Year Silver Regional Award.

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*All information is believed to be true at time of publishing and is subject to change.