It’s not the first renovation rodeo for husband-and-wife duo Lisa and Geoff Heath. The couple, who have two sons – a five-year-old and a seven-year-old – were determined to create the perfect family home during their latest project in NSW’s Forresters Beach. “We wanted to create a functional family home with quality construction and timeless design; a home that was soothing and felt joyful to be in,” Lisa explains of the four-bedroom, four-bathroom project. “We thought about where we wanted to connect as a family and also have spaces to retreat for a break.”
For the new build, Lisa took the lead with the design elements while Geoff, who is a builder who has built over 500 homes, was on the tools. Lisa admits that in previous renovations they tackled together, they would not always see eye to eye on creating a look and feel they both wanted, but they’ve come a long way since then. “My partner and I are pretty good. However, we were not in the beginning. This was our eighth renovation project in the last five years so we have learnt a lot now and know what each other would or would not like,” she says.
“In the beginning, my husband’s style was very masculine and I was very feminine so we would butt heads. Over the years, we found our style and have moved to a more feminine, minimal design aesthetic that is light, bright and timeless. We are both now happy. Geoff has so much on his plate with the build and managing the trades that I focus on the design. We divide and conquer to manage the workload.”
While working on the Forrester Beach new build project, the couple used Yabby Warm Brushed Nickel Tapware, which they chose after it was suggested by a trusted source. “Yabby was recommended to me by the best interior designer I know. She said the colour is lovely and I have not heard any negative feedback in the industry from people who have been using Yabby,” Lisa says. “This gave me confidence to give it a go. I thought the price point was fantastic and it's been a great experience. It's rare you can save on money without sacrificing or compromising quality but Yabby was a win-win. I loved the Warm Brushed Nickel colour and noticed not all brands had that specific colour available.”
After learning from past renovations and builds, the couple have learnt how beneficial it is to plan everything well in advance to ensure things move as efficiently as possible. “We started with the end in mind. We had drawn and planned everything so ordering was a lot easier as we were not making decisions on the fly or as we got to that stage of the renovation. It was all done in advance,” Lisa explains. “We then made a timeline for when we would need certain trades such as waterproofers, tilers, electricians, plumbers and pre-booked them three months in advance of when we would need them.”
While the timeline may have moved here and there, giving the “heads-up” to the trades made things go much more smoothly than it would have if they were just booking them along the way as needed. “As the project got closer to the time, we needed certain trades, we would reach out and touch base with them again to advise if we needed them sooner or later due to unforeseen problems occurring and pushing out the timeline,” Lisa adds. “This meant our project ran like clockwork. Each trade came one after the next. There was no delay in waiting for trades or work to be completed. Due to interest rates and holding costs, we had to manage the project to keep moving.”
The hard work in the planning stages paid off. Lisa says that the couple’s full house build plus pool, landscaping and driveway took a total of eight months to complete. That’s not to say the journey wasn’t without hiccups – and Lisa confirms they came across a few stumbling blocks. “The most challenging part of the renovation was the stone work took longer than expected. We adapted by getting in and helping out. My husband would labour to save the guys time,” Lisa says. “The internal upstairs of our house was painted the wrong colour. The walls and architraves needed to be repainted. The paint was the correct colour; however, was tinted wrong at the paint shop. This was stressful and time consuming as a re-paint was required to achieve the right colour.”
Balancing the new build project with family life and other work could also be tricky at times. “I was working as a primary school teacher and my husband was working full-time on our build,” Lisa says. “We have two little boys, aged five and seven years old so it was a juggle meeting everyone's needs and making sure no balls were dropped.” All in all, it was all worth it for Lisa, Geoff and their two boys and Lisa has some sage advice for anyone else tackling a similar project. “Renovating is hard but so rewarding,” she says. “Jump in, have fun and don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it. If we got stuck, we would reach out via Instagram or email to different people for help. Most people are really happy to share their knowledge.”
