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Forget downsizing, the new word is rightsizing say this stylish couple of their Auckland apartment

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Why rightsizing has worked for this Auckland couple’s city lifestyle.

ABOVE Lorraine and Ian West give a subtle nod to their Scottish roots in their Mt Eden apartment with a black and white photograph of Sean Connery as 007, bought at Trenzseater; James Bond overlooks a collection of Wedgwood vases, jugs and gravy boats picked up at antiques stores and flowers are displayed in a Jonathan Adler vase. RIGHT Wrapped in Fornasetti wallpaper, the entrance, with its burl wood armoire from Antiques of Europe, is immediately eye-catching; the chair, a Trade Me find, was painted and reupholstered, and several objects were brought back from London including the beaded cushion (by Rockett St George, bought at Liberty’s) and the mirror and lamp (both from Heal’s), while the rug was shipped back from Turkey following a cruise there in 2019; the Royal Doulton plate is unusual: “Half of it is the face of Salvador Dali and the other half is Marilyn Monroe,” says Lorraine.

Rightsizing. It’s a word that has come to carry real meaning for Lorraine and Ian West in the past year or so. When the couple sold their 1920s home in Auckland’s Parnell and bought an apartment half its size, it was not a compromise. The beautiful new space fits them like an elegant glove. Lorraine, who has worked in the fashion industry for all of her career, knew moving to a 110sqm pad would involve an edit of their possessions – but she saw it as an adventure and an important first step in a new journey. “In the short to medium term, we hope to be able to travel,” she says. Finding the right three-bedroom, two-bathroom place was more challenging. Most had rooms that were too small; others were not cost-effective – “you were paying too much for a tiny peep of the sea” – and there were plenty where the quality of the fit out didn’t meet the grade. It was a steep learning curve.

So, when the couple found this contemporary building in Mt Eden, with its industrial-style palette of concrete block and steel beam construction, they knew they had met their match. The kitchen had beautiful engineered stone benchtops, the bathrooms were tiled floor-to-ceiling and beyond the front door, there was an entry hall where fabulous first impressions could be made. “In so many apartments, you step straight into the living room,” says Lorraine.

Apart from the uptown location, which meant cafes, restaurants and the shops were within walking distance, there was the bonus of two carparks and two storage facilities in the basement. Editing down is all very well, but a gal’s gotta have options.

Before they moved in, the couple replaced the carpets with a woollen version, installed a second oven – Lorraine loves to cook and bake – and re-fitted the wardrobes. “I gave 10 cartons of clothes away to the op shop and the deal was that Ian got to use the wardrobes in the two spare bedrooms and I had exclusive use of the walk-in one in the main suite.”

After painting the walls white, Lorraine began to layer up the interiors. “Although black and white is the foundation of my style, I do like a bit of colour,” she says.

Nobody could accuse her of creating a plain, characterless box. Take the entrance hall – wrapped in dreamy Fornasetti wallpaper, it’s an expression of eclecticism. An ornate French chair, a Trade Me find reupholstered in a classic black and white fabric, sits alongside an antique burl wood dresser, and is finished with a beaded cushion with pop art-style luscious red lips. The space may be small, but the statement is larger than life.

Although Lorraine is currently studying at the Nanette Cameron School of Interior Design, it’s obvious she already knows her stuff. Every corner of the apartment is co-ordinated

by collection and by colour in a superb demonstration of design discipline. On the open shelves in the kitchen, Lorraine has assembled green and amber glassware and a grouping of white pottery. A striking black candelabra and a bulbous smoky glass vase filled with white blooms are echoed in the mirror-like splashback.

“I believe every room should have a mirror or a play of light,” says Lorraine.

“We use table lamps a lot more than we did in our larger home. I think it’s because there we tended to look outwards to the garden, whereas here the focus is on the interior detail – it’s a different mindset.”

A marble-topped oval dining table is perfectly proportioned for the petite openplan living zone, its tulip base keeping the mood refined, while its polished top reflects the shapes and shadows of the room.

Although the Wests had to put their bigger furniture pieces in storage, there are several zones in the living room, including a reading corner with a tan leather chair. A lamp with a russet-hued base carries on the theme and abstract black artworks pair with a Gordon Walters fabric on a scatter cushion to extend the monochrome link.

The couple’s art helps to transform the apartment from standard to show-stopper. Often it sets the agenda. A print of Manhattan sets up a smart mid-century theme in what

Lorraine calls her East Coast bedroom. “I used to visit New York a fair bit because of my roles in the fashion industry with multiple global brands,” explains Lorraine.

Another bedroom is dedicated to US West Coast-style, with a fresh palette of corals and pinks – and a vintage bamboo bedhead painted yellow. “We stayed at The Beverly Hills Hotel on one holiday and the photographic print here reminds me of that.”

The light-filled main bedroom opens off the living area and has a more subdued scheme. It’s cleverly designed to be private so even when visitors are in residence, Lorraine keeps the door open and has positioned a little table with a vase to draw the eye.

This outgoing couple love to entertain and find that, because many of their friends have moved out of town, their little home is in hot demand for sleepovers. Of course, when the beach or the bush calls, the favour is returned.

When the time is right, the couple, who hail from Scotland, might buy a second property overseas. While the apartment keys into that lock-it-and-leave future, it also emboldens their here and now. Lorraine has joined the body corporate committee and is getting more involved with the local uptown community. “We are big-city people,” she says. “We like the buzz of it.”

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2021-10-01T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-10-01T07:00:00.0000000Z

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