Number 84 is one of a cluster of houses in a gated estate and is set on 4881sq m of bush-clad land -- made private from neighbours by mature trees.
The style of the striking plaster home with tiled roof so impressed one visitor she told the couple she could completely imagine Patricia coming down its grand foyer staircase wearing a tiara.
Patricia says: "This house has got amazing visual appeal. Lots of people have said it reminds them of a castle. I love the architecture and the way the layout flows."
She established an attractive front garden around generous off-street parking. This accompanies a carpeted double-garage housing Ken's Rolls Royce Silver Dawn and Patricia's Mercedes convertible.
Ken used to have a lighting company and imported the Egyptian chandelier especially for the double-height entry foyer with grand staircase.
The couple were keen boaties in earlier years and appreciate their home's splendid northeast-facing views across the gulf and many islands.
Ken says: "You admire all the moods of the sea, from tranquil on a beautiful sunny summer day to being white with foam during 70-knot storms in winter."
The couple have entertained here often over the years and Patricia particularly likes the intimacy of having drinks in "the atrium", an informal front dining area off the kitchen. Ken's a big fan of his wife's cooking, which is undertaken in the expansive kitchen with walk-in pantry and rimu bench-tops.
There's another chandelier in a lounge that opens to their expansive front deck and boasts a hearty enclosed wood-burning fire. As well as a formal dining room they have another living room where they enjoy sitting on summer nights admiring the effect of floodlights they installed around the swimming pool-spa pool area.
Ken says: "It's very private out there and at night it's like a Hollywood resort the way it is lit up."
Downstairs is rounded out by a bedroom now used as an office, a bathroom and a separate laundry.
Upstairs the master bedroom has a balcony and walk-through wardrobe leading to an expansive extra room. Retired laboratory nurse Patricia likes to call this "the imagination room" because of its versatility to be anything from a study to a gym.
The couple outfitted the master bedroom's opulent Hollywood-style en suite, which features an octagonal ceiling alcove incorporating feature lighting. The couple, who married 15 years ago, after having been friends for many years before, thoroughly recommend sharing a bottle of Moet in the romantic spa bath.
All three upstairs bedrooms are spacious with great views, and the other two bedrooms both have en suite access to the main bathroom.
Ken and Patricia are ready to downsize, keen on the having a lock-up-and-leave property and doing some more travelling.
