With their striking acid yellow (Resene Tweet) bedroom, crisp combinations of black and white, clever configuration of their outdoor spaces and artistic use of an eye-catching wallpaper in their living room, the Black team (aka Jay Blair and Amanda Fall) certainly created a fantastic home for themselves and Amanda’s three children on the recent series of TV2’s Mitre 10 Dream Home.

At the beginning of the series, Jay and Amanda won a place in the final, impressing the judges with their creative scale model of their intended home. They then went on to win various challenges including the living room, the hallway/rumpus room and the landscaping. Always attentive to budget, they impressed the judges and viewers with their can-do attitude. In the grand final, they bid for their house at auction, buying it at a much lower price than the registered valuation.

Mitre 10 Dream Home was sponsored by Resene, Toyota and ASB among others. 

What was the biggest challenge during the house project?

Learning how long it took to do things and figuring out the best plan of attack.

Which room/area did you most enjoy working on, and why?

The kids’ rooms - because they got to design these rooms and we got to create them.

What is your favourite decorating colour or colours, and why?

Black and white. Our home has many different tones of that combination. We think it’s a sharp, striking and meaningful colour scheme.

A smart and sophisticated exterior is finished in Resene Waterborne Woodsman CoolColour exterior stain tinted to Resene Pitch Black on the vertical weatherboards with Resene Black White for the other cladding. 

Jay and Amanda gave their living room a sophisticated scheme using Resene Black White on the walls and Resene Half Fuscous Grey on the wall behind the bookcase. A feature was also made of the fireplace by framing it in an oversized graphic print wallpaper in black, white and silver (Vanity Fair 785630) which is available from Resene ColorShops. 

The kitchen continues the monochromatic tones with Resene Black White and Resene Half Fuscous Grey. 

A striking and personal feature of the kitchen is the glass splashback printed with portraits of the children. 

Resene Green Spring gives this boy’s bedroom a fresh khaki backdrop for military-style accessories. 

The soft aqua of Resene Charlotte is a perfect sea tone for this mermaid to swim in. 

The kids TV room had bold gridded artworks hung against walls painted in Resene Black White, and a casual feel with colourful bean bags. 

Clever use was made of the restricted spaces outside of the house, with intimate sitting areas as well as the mirrors set into the boundary walls to give an illusion of increased space. Team Black also only spent half of their planned budget in the landscaping challenge.