Home renovation advice
When it comes to home renovations, the Refresh team has done (and seen) it all! We’re more than happy to share our experience and expertise – and you’ll find loads of helpful articles, photos, videos and more on our website.
If you’re interested in a specific renovation topic, select from the categories below. You’re also welcome to ask in person about your potential renovation. If you’d like to talk with one of our friendly team members, please get in touch.
Show advice for: Kitchen | Bathroom | Extend | Open-plan | Flow | Loft | Re-clad | Warm up | Outdoor | Renovations |
Transformation of an Auckland Bungalow
An ambitious renovation in Auckland’s Mt Albert has seen a tiny bungalow transformed into a statement-making family home.
The Big Reveal - When to show off your renovation?
The big reveal of your new renovation to family and friends can be a bit of an anticlimax, warns Duncan Stuart.
Warm up this winter with curtains from Resene
Keep your house warm, cosy and looking good this coming winter with this special offer from Resene.
Methven Satinjet Showers
Whether you’re completing a full-scale renovation project or simply wish to update your bathroom – you can now bring award-winning design home with the Koha and the Waipori Satinjet hand showers.
Create a space to work at home
For many people a home workspace is no longer a luxury, it’s a must. Yet all too often, this hard-working area of the family real estate doesn’t benefit from the same thought and attention to detail as other areas. Here are six simple steps to help you create a home workspace you’ll adore.
A look at New Zealand furniture design
A distinctive New Zealand furniture design style is evolving – it has a natural rawness, influenced by our country and lifestyle, is uncomplicated yet at the same time stylish. We look at some of the current chair designs and the basic elements of chair construction.
When creativity goes bad
While imagination is a great starting point for many projects, Kylie Jurgensen finds out that too much renovation inspiration can be, well, simply too much.
The romance of renovating
While chivalry and courtly love is not a big part of our Kiwi heritage, Kylie Jurgensen reckons that bonding over an honest day’s work most certainly is...
Redeeming qualities
An ability to see potential in anything leads columnist, Kylie Jurgensen, to contemplate her next renovation project…
Central heating systems that are ideal for retrofitting
Anyone who has spent any time in northern Europe will know that there’s nothing quite like central heating to warm the cockles of your heart.
Know your rights - a guide to consumer law
Seasoned renovators know that good relationships with competent tradespeople and reliable suppliers are the key to a successful renovation. But what happens when things go wrong: a job isn’t up to scratch, the relationship with a contractor sours, or a product doesn’t deliver as expected?
Which type and size of hot water system is best for your home
Providing hot water accounts for around 30 per cent of the total energy costs of a typical New Zealand household – so it’s important to consider how much heated water you need and what energy sources you have available.
Roofing Material Options in New Zealand
When it comes to adding the crowning glory to your new house or replacing a tired cap on your treasured home, there are some critical roofing decisions to be made that include performance and cost.*
Renovation values
In this age of peaked house prices, worldwide austerity measures, and sluggish markets, renovation consents have remained astonishingly stable as families adopt a back-to-basics attitude and seek creative ways to use existing space.
Land price pressure
Two recent reports state that New Zealand house prices have – yet again – been rated as “severely unaffordable”. Deborah Carlyon explains what this means for the average Kiwi.
Stay money savvy
Is it a good time to buy a house? It’s a question I hear often and for first home buyers, it’s an especially big life stage decision.