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Peter and Paul’s amazing restoration project has come to market
Hawthorne House near Hastings has been transformed in recent years, but it’s now time for a new owner.
15 October 2025
It’s a fact - some people are just cut out to be hosts, and Peter Allen and Paul Smith are two of them. They’re also cut out to be interior designers.
The husband-and-husband team have poured their time, love and skills into rejuvenating Hawthorne House, a magnificent Edwardian villa in Hawke’s Bay. They love having guests, and have operated a B&B business, but have made the decision to sell their extra-large home.
While the renovation project has been a labour of love, the couple say they need to “rewire” and slow down. “It’s time for us to let someone else come in and enjoy it, either to run a business or enjoy it as a lovely family home,” Allen says.
Allen and Smith love entertaining, and their home has been renovated with precisely this in mind.
In addition to the heritage house, which has an ensuite bathroom in each of the five large bedrooms, plus a guest toilet, there is a separate attached three-bedroom house.
“We call this house The Mews,” Allen says. “This could be a rental, or extra accommodation for the extended family.”
And they say Hawthorne House comes with a history. Built in 1906, the house was relocated to its 5ha site in Pakipaki in the 1960s, which would have been a major exercise, as the 460² house is massive, with spacious rooms and high ceilings.
The house was cut into pieces and trucked to its new site in the 1960s.
As expected, there is a grand stained glass entry to Hawthorne House.
The house was originally a doctor’s residence, sited on a corner block close to the Hastings racecourse. Allen and Smith understand the house took over a year to build, with all the stained glass manufactured in London and shipped out via steamship.
The timber was cut locally, and the mouldings shaped by local craftsmen.
Fortunately, the house survived the devastating earthquake of 1931. But the local Borthwick Freezing Works did not survive the quake, and the house now stands on that site, which was cleared in the late 1960s.
Allen and Smith have undertaken a full renovation since they moved in six years ago, creating a beautiful, dark sitting room that’s a perfect backdrop for their artworks.
All the original features of the house have been retained, including the huge fireplace.
The Hawthorne House website notes: “What was the original pumphouse is still on the site, as are some of the foundations of the freezing works, which had its own railway platform. This is still in place, and now overlooks a large duck pond.”
Allen and Smith undertook the most recent full renovation themselves. “Paul has a background in fashion and design and we both like collecting things,” Allen says. “The house hadn’t been decorated inside for 20-plus years. As well as painting the entire house, inside and out, we installed a new kitchen and updated the bathroom.”
They say they have been amassing their art collection since before they were born (in Allen’s case), which is why every wall, shelf, table and garden corner is filled with original artworks, including paintings, glass, ceramics and sculpture.
This is the formal dining room - there is another informal dining area in the kitchen-family room.
The couple also installed a new kitchen - they say it had been more than 20 years since the house was last redecorated.
“The display of the artwork is also a form of art, in our opinion, and as such we have created a great relationship with Rob Bratton, the master of the perfect salon hang, which takes pride of place in several of our rooms.
“We embrace the design philosophy of surrounding yourself with things that you love and respond to.”
The photos tell the story. The couple have not been afraid to make bold colour statements. Every room has its own ambiance. The formal sitting room is a dramatic black, which is the perfect backdrop to gold-framed artworks and curios.
There are country views from all the suites, each of which has a different theme.
Polished native timber flooring features throughout.
The bedroom suites all have their own themes, and are beautifully colour co-ordinated. Allen and Smith say they are happy to negotiate any of the furniture and art with a buyer, but some more personal artworks are not for sale.
The property, at 1420 Railway Road South, Pakipaki, which is 8km from Hastings, is listed for sale with Graham Wall of Wall Real Estate. It has a 2022 RV of $3.89 million.
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