Home profile
Meet and greet: Kady Buchanan (relationship manager), her husband, their two sons, aged 11 and 12, Cowboy the dog and Sherman Meow, the cat.
The property: A 1920s four-bedroom arts and crafts home in St Mary’s Bay, Auckland.
It’s said that a change is as good as a holiday, which certainly rings true for Connecticut-born Kady Buchanan. When she and her family left their home in Hong Kong of 13 years for a property in Aotearoa, her approach to interiors celebrated a new beginning.
Life in Hong Kong was a string of apartments, so the 1920s arts and crafts home Kady, her husband and their two children moved into in St Mary’s Bay, Auckland, allowed her more space and flexibility to decorate.
A leap of faith brought her here. Despite visiting New Zealand several times with her Kiwi-born husband, the family bought the house without seeing it in person. They moved to New Zealand in November 2021 towards the end of the Covid-19 lockdown in Auckland and were pleased the house was close to their loved ones. “We wanted to be in this area as it is close to family. Part of the reason we moved to New Zealand was to be near them,” she says.
Not only did the location of the house appeal, so did the heritage aspects. “Previous owners had recently renovated it, so it was in great condition, with good bones and structure. What attracted us was its charm, such as the stained-glass window, ceiling mouldings and door knobs; a mix of quirky and charming.”
Scaling up
These historic bones would be used as the interior design canvas. But first, Kady who favours colour, patterns and wallpaper, needed furniture that worked for a large house after all the apartment living. “We had lived in four apartments in Hong Kong and collected furniture over time to fit in those different spaces. It was a hodge-podge. So, we needed furniture to match the quality of the house.”
A few significant milestones took place in Hong Kong: her engagement and marriage to her husband and their children’s births. “It was important to have a home that brought a piece of that to New Zealand. I knew I didn’t want to go with a neutral, minimal aesthetic but wanted something more. I wanted the decor to pop and recognise our travels, previous homes and hobbies as boaters, photographers and travellers. We wanted that to happen because Asia is a big part of our lives.”
Unfamiliar with New Zealand’s stores, Kady contacted interior designer Erina Emery from Erina Emery Interiors to guide her through the decorating process. “Being new to New Zealand, I didn’t know much about where to get anything. So I thought it would be helpful to get an interior designer,” she says. “I wanted someone who knew my love of colour and a friend recommended Erina. In the end, it felt like a true collaboration.”
Room to explore
Although the house didn’t need any structural or wall paintwork, it did need furniture and decor that embraced Kady’s love of bright hues. She’d always wanted to use wallpaper and this 1920s Auckland home was the perfect opportunity to do just that. It was also an opportunity to use a fabric she’d had for years in the hope she’d be able to find a use for it someday.
“She had a fabric she loved: the blue animal print on the occasional chairs in the kitchen/living area. It was a great starting point. We utilised this in some fabulous custom-designed swivel chairs, adding blue piping to enhance the print,” says Erina, who incorporated a photograph by Kady’s sister photographer, Alexandra Tremaine, in the same space.
Erina compiled moodboards and went shopping with Kady to capture her style. “I’m very decisive, I know what I like,” Kady says. “Erina would push me on some things, such as the lounge ottoman. I couldn’t get my head around the shape. Now I feel so happy she pushed me on that. She had a vision and that was great.”
Also in the lounge, a pink cabinet exudes warmth and ease in a comfortable space the family loves to gather in. “I love the living room as it is so cosy. We aren’t used to having winters, having lived in Hong Kong. So now we have that space with a fireplace, television, long boucle couch, rattan chairs and a big oval ottoman.
Uplifting decor
I knew I wanted something bold, so I opted for the pink of Epiphany by Aalto on the cabinet. It’s so much fun. That room is lovely in winter with the whole family watching a movie in front of the fire with the cat and dog.”
While celebrating the laundry rather than overlooking it, Kady brought in a vibrant pink pattern in A Wild Desert Dream/Orchid by Schumacher & Co to make doing the laundry more pleasant. “I dislike doing the laundry, so this design makes using that space really fun,” she explains.
Kady and her family are now enjoying the home they’ve crafted and bathed in colour and pattern. They have no plans to move abroad again. They have said goodbye to one chapter and are embracing the beginning of a new one.
Shop Kady’s 1920s Auckland home style
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