Remuera - A fine romance

A chance meeting has resulted in marriage, children and a tastefully renovated home.

6 Darwin Lane, Remuera.

Chance is a fine thing. Without it this spacious five-bedroom family home might still be a modest 50s remnant and its owners two strangers from different parts of the globe.

Architect Matthew Godward, a director of Godward Guthrie Architecture, and wife Trasa organise their toddlers while enthusiastically describing how they transformed their 1950s house.

The renovation - and indeed little Alexander and Sam - came about because of a chance meeting nine years ago.

Trasa was on her third attempt to fly from her London home to visit a girlfriend in New Zealand. The day before her first attempt she found she'd been mistakenly booked to Oakland, California instead of Auckland. She reserved an Auckland-bound flight two weeks later, only to be turned away because it was overbooked.

``I was starting to think, `This isn't meant to be'. I decided if they couldn't get me on the next flight I wasn't going to come.''

She ended up on a flight that was full bar one empty seat, between her and a stranger she discovered was a Kiwi named Matthew.

That initial meeting led to their Waiheke wedding in 2000, and three years later the couple bought a two-bedroom 1950s house overlooking Orakei Basin in tranquil Darwin Lane.

Matthew knew his architectural skills could help develop the dwelling's good bones into a substantial two-level family home, optimising the private location and coveted, sheltered position overlooking the water.

They gutted almost the entire interior, reconfigured the upstairs, excavated substantially to enlarge the lower level and created flow through an open stairwell.

The end result is a spacious and light-filled home family home that feels totally unified, but has the bonus of a lower level able to offer self-contained living if required.

Matthew designed the home primarily as a one-family dwelling but knew Trasa was pregnant and her parents planned extended visits from England. He describes the completed home as ``a lovely, open, light-filled, inviting, funky kind of a house''.

An original wall of volcanic rock at the entry has been plastered to create a textured but more monolithic appearance.

Children are drawn to the fish tank inside while adults tend to gravitate towards the views enjoyed from the open plan expanse comprised of living and dining areas plus a gleaming new kitchen. There is also a media room and a study on this floor.

Frangipani thrives in a private courtyard off the guest bedroom. Great views from the master bedroom are shared by its en suite, where clever sliding internal shutters ensure privacy when visitors use the decks and spa pool below.

Other outdoor living includes a broad upper deck, a courtyard off the kitchen and a patio and flat lawn downstairs.

The only route downstairs used to be outside but now wide stairs unify the levels. The self-contained ground floor has a generous living space with kitchen and dining at one end, two bedrooms and another luxurious new bathroom.

The couple love the intimacy of the lane, where friendly neighbours enjoy occasional lane parties. However, Matthew describes himself as ``an architect with itchy feet looking for something else to get my teeth into'' and they are moving on to a new project.

VITAL STATISTICS

BEDROOMS: 5

BATHROOMS: 3

GARAGES: 2+

SIZE: Land half share of 1229sq m, house 263sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: Interest expected above 2005 CV of $1.39 million. Auction September 3.

INSPECT: Sun 2.15-3.15pm, Thurs 12.30-1.30pm.

ON THE WEB: www.kellands.co.nz

CONTACT: Holleigh Mason, Kellands, ph 021 289 9000, 302 2209 bus, 520 3439 a/h.

FEATURES: Architect's own home in tranquil and private central location with striking views across Orakei Basin, all day sun and expansive parking. Contemporary 1950s-conversion with multiple living areas, new kitchens and bathrooms. Numerous outdoor areas.