Design For Life

For Life The Block Host Shelley Ferguson Has Seen Many Changes Of Late, But She’s Embracing It All. She Opens Up To Erin Fisher About Healing Hormonal Imbalance And Her Exciting New Venture.

- Erin Fisher

As a TV host, magazine editor and interior designer, it’s easy to imagine that Shelley Ferguson would be the trendy mum, pulling up to school drop-off each day looking absolutely immaculate. Yet soon after we sit down, she is laughing about how she waved her two boys off to school from behind the wheel, still dressed head-to-toe in her pyjamas. This is a woman who knows not to take things too seriously, but it’s been a lesson hard-learned, from challenges along the way.

Family life

This year is Shelley’s fifth season as host of The Block, supporting the four teams as they compete against each other to renovate and transform a historic Auckland firehouse into high-end apartments for auction. It’s a high-stakes environment, but Shelley’s relaxed, keep-it-simple style shines through in each episode.

Her own home is a Palm Springs themed abode, where she lives with hubby Steve and sons Flynn, seven, and Jett, six. When she’s not busy with work or the kids, she is Steve’s number one supporter; he has competed at the Olympics in swimming and canoeing, and at the world champs for surf lifesaving. In recent news, he has landed himself a spot as a grinder on the Emirates Team New Zealand sailing squad, defending the 2021 America’s Cup.

Their busy schedule can be a lot to juggle, but for Shelley, everything comes back to the people she has at home. Her fun-loving spirit and familyoriented approach to life were summed up perfectly in an interview on the show, when she was asked what three things she couldn’t live without. Her answer? Family and friends, wine and laughter.