This East Taieri property has been transformed into a heavenly home but it has not been without sacrifice.
Owner Maria Porter spent four months in a caravan while builders renovated the former Sunday School Hall.
Her two children slept in the only rooms in the house that were still intact, with baby monitors providing an audio link.
When temperatures plummeted, a gas torch was put on pipes from the bore, to thaw the water inside and fill up the tanks in the caravan for a shower."It was pretty primitive. We had a Portaloo, the shower in the caravan and a barbecue," she recalls.
"The dog and the cat slept in the caravan too."
"Then we lived in [the house] on concrete floors for another year, including lockdown. It was noisy and difficult but worth it in the end."
Built about 1899, the Silverside Sunday School was converted to a home in the 1950s and altered several times by subsequent owners.
Alice Sinclair and her late husband, Len, bought the property in 1955. While the hall was solid, the piles were large square tins filled with concrete, the internal walls sat on butter boxes and many of the walls were covered with scrim, Mrs Sinclair says.
"It had been made into a house but some of the walls weren’t in the right place or weren’t straight so we got a carpenter in."
When Miss Porter first saw the stucco building eight years ago, it had a leaking roof and low ceilings in the living area but plenty of redeeming features.
"I liked that it had French doors [on to] a large deck," she says.
"The kitchen had the original high-pitched ceiling and it just had a really lovely feel."
The occupational therapist wanted an open-plan home, with exposed trusses to reflect the history of the building as a hall and versatile living spaces that would allow her to move furniture around for large family gatherings.
"Making the most of the sunlight and warmth was a big thing for me too."
The original part of the house, which was gutted and renovated, contains four bedrooms and two bathrooms.
The new, open-plan space includes a north-facing living and dining area, with a flexible sitting/study area at one end and a mezzanine above. The high, sloping ceiling and exposed trusses are reminders of what the hall would have originally looked like.
Sliding glass doors lead to a new deck, which was built around an existing maple tree.
Although the home’s footprint increased by only 10sq m to 142sq m, it feels much bigger due to the better use of space and the visual connection with the outdoors.
It is also warmer, thanks to high levels of insulation, thermally-broken double-glazed windows and a new wood burner.
Miss Porter opted for a "light and bright" interior that is predominantly white but includes walls of slate blue, faded green and a soft, dusty pink.
"We also added little bits of natural wood to break it up," she says, pointing out a timber slatted screen in the new entry.
The pale walls contrast with the dark fibre cement exterior and don’t compete with the leafy surroundings.
The house is already a social hub for her extended family, and those connections will strengthen when her parents build a two-bedroom home in a corner of the half-acre (0.2ha) section.
Spending winter in the caravan was difficult but she eventually got to live in the home that she had imagined, she says.
"The battle at the moment is to maintain this house as a single parent and with interest rates going up. But it’s something I’m determined to do because it’s the kids’ home and they love it.
"The house provides so much warmth and natural light and can adapt to our family’s changing needs as the kids grow. To be able to already live in my forever home is such a great feeling."
