How Ben and Quinn from The Block Use PDL Iconic in a Family Home
See how Ben and Quinn Alexandre of The Block fame use PDL Iconic switches in their bungalow home renovation.
Couple Ben and Quinn Alexandre from The Block are no stranger to home builds and renovations. Their newest project involves renovating a run-down 1940s bungalow to a modern family home, including all the electrical solutions that modern living demands — not an easy task considering the home’s outdated decor and electrical setup! Find out why the couple chose PDL Iconic switches and sockets for the job and how PDL Iconic switches completed the look of the renovation.
Transforming a 1940s bungalow into a modern family home meant a total makeover by former Block contestants Ben and Quinn Alexandre. While the couple are no strangers to renovation — having become familiar faces during their stint on the 2014 season of TV3’s reality show The Block — this time they started with their toddler Cooper and welcomed their baby daughter, Daisy, in December 2016.
“It was crazy,” laughs Quinn, as she recalls making their initial plans to makeover the property after buying it in early 2016.
Ben and Quinn’s Big Bungalow Challenge
They describe the house as being ‘badly run-down’ when they bought it. Luckily, the house had ‘good solid bones’, so they could see the potential for transforming it into a modern family home.
“It was just the décor, mainly,” says Quinn. “Aesthetically, it needed a lot of work. The carpet was bright red, and the walls were all yellow and the curtains were multi-coloured. It was the carpet that was the main ‘holy moly!’.” Outside, there was a wooden wheelchair ramp and little to no garden, but plenty of space to develop an outdoor entertaining area.
Looking to give the property a major upgrade, Ben and Quinn set about adding their touch to the house. “We were trying to create something comfortable, low maintenance, and easy living for a family,” says Ben.
While Ben concentrated on the outside — building a large deck, re-roofing and making the neglected garden more family-friendly — Quinn devoted her time to updating the interior. “I wanted to freshen it up and make it more modern. I did white throughout the whole house as that brightens everything up. The aim was modern and light and airy.”
How switches affect the look and feel of a home
The history of a house is usually reflected in its architecture, but for Ben and Quinn, it was the light switches that revealed most about the bungalow they renovated recently in Christchurch.
The four-bedroom home in Linwood contained PDL switches from every decade since the house had been built — from a black 1940s switch in the laundry through to paint-covered switches from the 1990s. Having worked with PDL by Schneider Electric during their time on The Block, the pair understood the importance of having the right switches when it comes to the overall look of the home and daily lives of its tenants.
“Until you change the switches, you just don’t get the effect it can have,” says Ben. “Just walking into a house with a nice light switch; when you flick it on, it makes an enormous difference.”
Ben and Quinn’s choice: PDL Iconic™ switches
The pair decided they wanted a modern look for the new switches throughout the house. So, they visited PDL’s Vision Studio showroom in Christchurch to see what would suit their plans. After browsing the various styles available, it was the simple lines of the new PDL Iconic™ range that caught their eye. “It looked modern,” explains Ben. “It was clean and sleek, and we chose it straight away.”
They were in good company: PDL Iconic™ also impressed the design industry, winning the prestigious 2017 Gold Design Award from the Designers Institute of New Zealand in the Consumer Category. Judges praised the range’s attention to detail, ease of installation, user flexibility, and impeccable production values.
PDL Iconic™ features
PDL Iconic™ wall plates can also connect with up to six different data, phone, HDMI, AV, and TV modules for the ideal customised combination.
Available at a standard price point, PDL Iconic™ features easily interchangeable matt finish skins in four colours: Vivid White, Cool Grey, Anthracite, and Black. These skins have translucent edges that pick up on background wall colours for more seamless integration.
PDL Iconic also offers optional warm white LEDs to help find switches in a darkened room or to indicate when a switch is in use, and a range of stylish pictograms to easily identify functions.
Additionally, PDL Iconic™ offers innovative optional add-ons such as:
- Optional warm white LEDs to help users find switches in a dark room or to indicate when a switch is turned on,
- A range of stylish pictograms to identify each switch’s function,
- Plug-in Night Walk Sensor Light Skin, which detects movement at night and illuminates softly to guide the way,
- A new three-module USB charger with shelf,
- A wide range of home connectivity features, allowing easy connection of home computers, smart devices, TVs and audio equipment, as well as control of lights, dimmers or timers via the Wiser Room app.
Ben says the simple installation and wide range available in PDL Iconic™ is a real bonus for a family home. “You can pop off the faceplate to clean them easily, and then just pop them back on. And we put the USB phone chargers in both bedrooms. Quinn finds that handy, because whenever I go away, I take the phone charger with me, and she’s stuck with a dead phone which is not ideal! But now she can just plug her iPhone cable into the wall, and it charges.”
A happy end to a successful renovation
The Alexandres finished the renovation in late 2017, and Quinn says that while they’re thrilled with the results, it was hard work getting it all done with two small children in the mix and giving up every weekend to painting and fixing. “Our weekends were always ‘reno’, and because you’re living there as well, you’re sitting in the lounge, and you can see all the things that need to be done. It’s hard to just relax. I’m glad we did it, but I wouldn’t rush to do it again!”
Seeing the original red carpet go was a highlight, especially as it had become covered in paint when Quinn repainted the interior on her own while Ben was at work during the day. The new carpet is in a plush grey, and Quinn says its addition brought the new look of the house together. Another favourite feature of hers was the pretty nursery she created for their daughter Daisy.
Ben and Quinn put the property on the market in April this year, having transformed it from a tired, run-down house, to a modern home designed for family living. With a new deck, landscaping, and updated interior complete with the sleek PDL Iconic™ throughout, they have brought this home firmly into the modern era and made it ready for its next chapter in history.
Discover PDL Iconic™
Feeling inspired and curious about PDL Iconic™? Discover our Iconic range today and see what options are available for your home.
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