Home & Leisure Magazine 2022

“Mark gave me the confidence to
work with them to bring my ideas to
fruition. We discussed what I needed
for my living environment, and that
was a design for the present, and for
the future. Really just a one-bedroom
home with a wing catering for guests
and family. I wanted the capacity to
have a dual-purpose bedroom and
Air B&B – I was looking for a way to
make an income when I retired.”
For Julie, the key requirements were
privacy, with the living area located
away from the street, open-plan living
space, a good-sized garage and plenty
of storage. One thing she didn’t want
was wasted space.
And the building company that
would provide all that had to be what
Julie describes as “relational”.
“I also wanted guarantees, with
national backing, and a fixed price,
and I didn’t want to be just another
number. Trident Homes were offering
all that, and they made me feel so
valued as a client. They offered plans,
but there was flexibility, allowing
things to be changed and tweaked.”
In fact, it was Julie herself who
devised the overall plan for her home
with guidance from Trident. This
resulted in the bespoke design, which
she says also features ‘up-spec’d’ fittings
and includes an open-plan kitchen/
living/dining space, three bedrooms –
one with an adjoining kitchenette, two
bathrooms, three toilets and an extralarge
double garage.
For the colour scheme, Julie worked
with Trident Homes’ colour consultant
Lynley Hansen from By Design
Interiors. Throughout the living areas
and two of the bedrooms, Wattyl
Magnesium was the choice, and for
her bedroom, the moody, dark -Silent
Silhouette by Wattyl, with a feature
wall in a striking floral wallpaper,
white ceiling and white trim.
“I had Lynley’s guidance, but she
gave me the space to make my own
choices. It was also important for me
to keep the chemical load down, so
the paint I chose is low VOC [volatile
organic chemicals]. It’s durable, and
friendly to the environment
and humans.”
home & leisure | 49
Above: The barn door opening from
the living area to the hallway is one of
Julie's favourite features.
Below left: The spacious open-plan
layout was a key requirement.
Below right: The kitchen offers plenty
of storage space.
Lynley Hansen