Home profile
Meet and greet: Zowie (registered nurse and Onsite Landscapes director) and Sean Polwart (Onsite Landscapes director), and their children, Faye, six, and Grayson, three.
The property: Renovated three-bedroom, one-bathroom, century-old, Ararimu farmhouse in South Auckland.
There’s magic woven through the Ararimu property Zowie and Sean Polwart share with their two children. Winding paths ribbon around the century-old farmhouse, meandering around bushes and vegetable patches, from sandpit to firepit, and inevitably to the garden’s whimsical centrepiece, a round-door hobbit house built into the slope of a little hill.
It’s a charming setting for a charmed life, but Zowie and Sean’s path to the present has been far from smooth. For the young couple to achieve a storybook life, they had to write their own.
Plot twists
Childhood sweethearts, together since they were 13, the couple once lived a different type of fairytale. Sean was living the dream of a rugby-mad Kiwi boy, playing for the Chiefs, while Zowie was working as a paediatric nurse, when their enviable life suddenly imploded.
A concussion injury in training put an end to Sean’s rugby career for good. Around the same time, Zowie found out she couldn’t carry children due to a medical condition.
The couple was forced to redefine what was important to them and rebuild their lives from the ground up. Sean retrained as a landscaper, launching a new business, Onsite Landscapes. Meanwhile, Zowie found another path to motherhood, with her sister-in-law acting as surrogate for their two children.
“We’ve been through all of that and a lot of loss. But now we’ve got our two kids, and home is very important to us,” says Zowie.
Embracing the country lifestyle
Perhaps in response to the uncertainty of those years, Zowie and Sean both sought a sense of permanence, a home they could settle into. What they wanted was a property that would embrace their growing family long term.
The couple started looking to make the shift from town to rural life. Country girl Zowie grew up on a dairy farm – and Riversmeade, a rural-fringe property in Ararimu, sat right in the Goldilocks zone of geographical convenience and pastoral charm.
Here to stay
The home seems to inspire deep roots – Zowie estimates that they are only the fourth family to own the home, with previous owners counting their residency in decades. Their family intends to continue that pattern, happily referring to this as their “forever home”.
This attitude has had a palpable effect on their approach to the home, Zowie says.
“We’ve definitely thought more about the materials that we use. For example, at our last place, we went for a standard nylon carpet, whereas here – even though people were like, ‘You’re nuts, you’ve got young kids’ – we invested in a wool loop pile because of the longevity.”
It also meant taking a long-term approach to comfort, with the couple investing in a healthier home. Some of the old windows had already been replaced, so Zowie and Sean finished the job, installing double-glazed aluminium windows. Ducted heating under the floors and a gas fireplace in the living room completed the home’s transformation.
Room to grow
With a view to forever, Zowie and Sean then launched into a mini extension, adding a walk-in wardrobe and ensuite to the main bedroom. As well as future-proofing the house for their growing family, this also provided an opportunity to transform the facade.
“Looking at the house, there was the wraparound veranda on the left-hand side, but on the right, it cut away, so the house was really lopsided,” says Zowie.
Extending out a few metres and mirroring the veranda served to visually balance the home’s facade.
Quiet beauty
The century-old farmhouse is steeped in history. While the previous owners had made a few modern improvements, Zowie says the soul of the home was preserved.
“When you walked in, you really got that sense of a classic home, which we loved.”
Charmed by the home’s history, the couple used a light touch to imprint it with their style, sticking with a neutral palette but introducing layers of texture and movement, including opting for wallpaper in all the bedrooms.
“With the high ceilings, there’s so much wall space to work with and it can be really hard to style,” says Zowie.
Interior styling
School friend Danni-Lee Corkery of Danni-Lee Designs came to the rescue with a big book of wallpaper samples and a professional eye for style.
“We had a clear idea of what we wanted, but the number of choices was overwhelming and time-consuming, especially with young kids. Having Danni to bounce ideas off and guide us through those decisions was helpful,” says Zowie.
Danni-Lee guided the couple through decision paralysis on big choices like interior and exterior paint colours, wallpaper and curtain fabrics, helping to shape a richly textured but neutral backdrop.
Against this base palette, Zowie and Sean have layered a mix of antique and modern pieces, seeking to create a cosy farmhouse feel. Zowie says it’s the vintage pieces that most shape the personality of the home. Inherited treasures include art from her late grandfather and a pair of armchairs from her nana, which sit alongside pre-loved Trade Me finds.
Adventure playgrounds
While the couple has been busy indoors, the most dramatic changes are out in the garden. Sean and his Onsite Landscapes team have transformed the paddocks into a landscaped wonderland – an adventure playground for kids and adults alike.
Inspired by the period charm of the exterior and the existing oak trees, the front garden has been turned into a cottage garden, while the rear of the property is a tangle of rambling paths. The children have been the prime motivation behind the project.
“With our backyard, we’re the house to go to, which is what we want,” says Zowie, who loves seeing her children surrounded by a gang of friends and cousins, rampaging around the property.
If a child can dream it, Sean has included it. There’s a trampoline and a sandpit, swings and monkey bars. A site with poor drainage, too difficult to grow on, has been converted into a basketball court, where the kids can dribble a ball or ride their bikes.
Hobbit Haven
Of course, the highlight is the hobbit house. There was something about the hillside site that demanded a hobbit house, complete with a little round door. Sean went to town on the build, which includes power points, a fold-out bed for future sleepovers, and even a waterfall.
“There’s no better joy than seeing all the kids out there,” says Zowie.
But it’s not just children who are enchanted by the hobbit house and the gardens; adults are obsessed, too. In fact, Sean and Zowie have recently hosted their first wedding on the property and hope it will be the first of many.
With sunlight turning the fields golden and trees casting a lacework of shadows over Sean’s flower-filled gardens, the home is simply too beautiful not to share.
Zowie and Sean’s tips for an engaging garden
Create easy-access pathways
Design pathways that flow naturally through your garden. We have them throughout, connecting the firepit, hobbit house, trampoline, sandpit, basketball court, monkey bars, swing and slide. These are all connected to the house and encourage adults and children to wander, discover, explore and enjoy every space.
Give each area a purpose
Treat your garden like the interior of your home – every space should have a function and feel intentional. We themed our property as a “wonderland”, so there are no wasted spaces; everything has a role and contributes to the overall experience.
Use a variety of materials
Mix surfaces for both practicality and interest. Bare-feet-friendly mulch, free-draining river stones and thoughtfully managed wet areas mean the garden can be enjoyed year-round.
Plan your planting theme carefully
We use a mixed cottage garden style, blending perennials, exotic plants and native shrubs to ensure colour and texture throughout the year. Tropical plants enhance the wonderland effect while also attracting birds and bees.
Zowie’s home truths
What areas of your build did you save on?
All the exterior work and landscaping as this was completed by Sean and his team.
And splurge?
The Escea gas fireplace, underfloor ducted heating and Bremworth wool carpet were definitely worth it. Quality, long-lasting investments that will serve the house for a lifetime. The concrete driveway was another big-ticket item, but one that makes everyday life so much easier.
Best lessons learned?
Make sure all your subcontractors are not just skilled, but also easy to deal with, communicative and trustworthy. The people you work with can make or break the process.
What would you never do again?
To never renovate again. This is our second renovation, and we’ve decided this will be our forever home.
Any renovation or DIY disasters?
The hobbit-house waterfall in the middle of winter. The mud was up to our knees after so much rain. Another was trying to grind down the old concrete fireplace floor before installing the new carpet. A messy lesson to learn.
What’s one thing you’d change about your home?
If there was something, we’d sort it because that’s the way we are.
Most memorable experience you’ve had in your home (good or bad)?
Hosting a wedding here in March 2025. It was the start of Riversmeade as a venue and something we’re looking forward to doing more of in the future.
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