CONTACT:
Clare Cassrels, Ray White,
ph 027 587 7383.
FEATURES:
Surrounded on three sides
by water, this lodge-like estate offers
luxurious living on a grand scale. Four
bedrooms and two living spaces in the
main house, plus a self-contained
apartment and an almost self-contained
area of loft accommodation.
On a horseshoe bend, halfway between Bottle Top Bay and Drury Creek in the very upper reaches of the Manukau Harbour estuary, lies a horseshoe-shaped house.
Conceptualised by its owners Josie and Leo Faber and executed by a skilled architectural draughtsman, this unusual shape was devised to fit snugly onits river promontory and to take full advantage of the heart-stopping romance of the surrounding scenery. It also took on board their wish list. Leo, ever a practical man, summarises this as: "Views from every room, good heating and lots and lots of storage."
Leo also likes a quiet house. Originally from Holland, he was used to double-glazing and solid construction and insisted on it here, although back in 2004 when this house was built this was not mandatory building practice in New Zealand. As a result, this is a house of rare quality, with schist pillars, wood-joinery accents and a steeply pitched roof giving it the appearance of a high-country lodge.
It certainly is the same size as many a lodge. Although they wanted generous spaces for themselves, Josie and Leo had other requirements, too. Josie needed accommodation for her elderly mother, so one end of the horseshoe has a self-contained flat for her, while the other end contains another area of private accommodation with its own staircase, decks, living area, bedroom and bathroom.
The main house is anchored around the kitchen. Off to one side of this is a roomy guest suite, and to the other a formal dining room and two sitting rooms. Many of these areas have sarked Fijian rimu cathedral ceilings.
Up the main staircase in solitary grandeur is the master bedroom suite. As large as the average inner-city apartment, it has a full-sized bathroom, dressing room / storage, a private outdoor living space and, of course, more views. "There are six outdoor living spaces in total but this is the best place to watch the action on the water," says Josie. "It's always alive. We've seen seals twice from up here."
Another favourite spot is a little alcove: tucked between curves in front of the formal dining room and sheltered by a wide overhanging eave, it is the perfect place to enjoy the sun setting across the water. "There's something about the way [the trees] catch the light - they just glow," says Leo enthusiastically.
A bit of a hunter-gatherer, Leo is also enthusiastic about his fishing and has caught flounder, mullet, kahawai and eels from the banks below the house. A bridge down to where the shags and ducks nest is a good place from which to fish, while a glass-fenced outdoor dining area, with pottery chiminea-style fire, is perfect for entertaining on a grand scale.
But despite this being the house Leo and Josie built as a home forever, two of the children have left home and the third is poised on the edge of the nest. "We are looking to downsize," Josie admits. "We just don't need all this any more, no matter how beautiful it is."
