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Show Your Style

May 2016

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Deciding on the look of your new home can be both exciting and daunting. Luckily your local G.J.’s has someone experienced to guide you through the process. One such person is Kirsty McConnell, part of the husband and wife team that run the Tauranga franchise. With a background in marketing, advertising, and graphic design, Kirsty has always had an interest in presentation. Becoming franchisees of the local Tauranga G.J.’s enabled her to put her mark on a number of Showhomes.

Kirsty believe she is constantly absorbing style inspiration, “It’s an essential part of my daily routine, researching looks, themes, colours, and designs”. You can see her work in the Tauranga Showhomes open to view daily from 11am to 3pm. One of these styles may resonate with you more than the others and act as the first step towards working on the style of your own home.

74 Golden Sands

In your excitement about styling a new home, you may already have collected bits and pieces and have some idea of the style you want, and this is great! But don’t worry if you are not sure where to start, because your local G.J.’s will work with you to make sure your style shines through. Kirsty does this by asking lots of questions right at the start, “This helps us get, and stay, on the same path from the very beginning to the final touches. As we narrow down what look you are really after, and the budget you have, we introduce you to specifications and materials that fit within your budget and the desired ‘look’. We start with all the exterior materials, selecting roofing, paint colours, brick colours, door and window joinery colours etc., then move inside and add all elements from flooring, tiling, kitchen and bathroom ware.” Good communication really is the key with this process.

89 Sandhurst Dr

Along with great two-way communication, Kirsty offers four of her best tips, she has learnt along the way:

1) The stronger the colour, the less there should be. Kirsty likes to surround a strong or vibrant colour ‘pop’ with lots of layered neutral tones.

2) Keep in mind, a swatch book paint colour can look vastly different when magnified on a wall. Try and see the colour painted on a large surface. You will need to trust the final colour swatch because often it is a lot ‘duller’ than what you may have first chosen, and what will appear on the wall.

3) Keep on budget by compromising on some features by identifying your ‘must-haves’ and ‘nice-to-haves’. You can often find ways to get the look you are after by choosing a more cost effective option, for example going with faux stone wallpaper rather than a stone tile wall feature.

4) Go for good quality over looks. Everything we put in a home has to last the distance, therefore we look for products and materials with warranties that match or exceed our own.

Lake Boulevald