TAKE A SEAT
The sitting room demonstrates Bronwen Coe’s love of mid-century furniture – pieces restored by her or on her to-do list appear throughout the home. The statement pendant is by David Trubridge and the corrugated iron barn door, which was made by Simon from the woolshed’s old cladding, divides this space from the bedrooms.
There’s a driftwood artwork in the entrance to Simon and Bronwen Coe’s family home, depicting a little boat bobbing on rough seas. Made by Bronwen herself, it represents their journey from the UK to New Zealand, then down south to Invercargill, and the hard work involved in building their own home.
“It’s a little bit of a raggedy boat, but it’s still here,” says Bronwen. The family are now enjoying calmer waters, in proud possession of a cosy, joyful home that was built, in part, with their own hands.
Needed elbow grease
The work was hard indeed, but for Simon, Bronwen and their three boys, it was also a grand adventure. After moving to Invercargill for Simon’s work in 2017, the family bought a four-hectare lifestyle block, bare but for a woolshed, with the intention of building from scratch. Having scrubbed and reclad the shed, they had the bright idea of moving into it while the house was built.
“We moved in there in April 2018, thinking that we would only be there for about six months, and we ended up living there for three years,” says Bronwen.
Sleeping in a caravan, parked within the woolshed, this living arrangement served them well, appealing to the boys’ sense of adventure, while allowing Simon and Bronwen the convenience of being on site to supervise the build – as well as getting their
