One-way trip to the seaside

By Sharon Newey

The house looks like it has always been here. Its striking half-circle frontage looks out across the surrounding land and towards the sea off Maraetai Beach, and it sits within a garden filled with meandering paths and pretty plantings.

But this 50-year-old house with its Art Deco-inspired features has sat on this land for just 15 years. It was barged in five pieces from its original site at Cockle Bay, Howick, having been built for Sir William Stevenson in the 1940s at Waikitiroa, the Stevenson homestead.

It now sits on semi-rural land above Maraetai Beach with panoramic views spreading west from Auckland city, north across to Waiheke Island and east to the Coromandel Peninsula.

One wing of the house, which used to be a private theatre, serves as a self-contained apartment for the owner's mother. It has its own entry, carport and courtyard garden. Perfect as a rental unit, a teenage retreat or granny flat, this area could also easily be reintegrated into the main house.

The house has an elegance typical of its era. The front entrance is a simple portico, flanked by two leadlight windows and entering through an arched door on to a generous, parquet-flooring foyer. Another arched door leads to a cloakroom, another enters into an intriguing little space, dubbed by the present owners as "the monk's room."

The living areas are large and sunny. The main living room is big enough to be split into two sitting spaces, and features the unusual half-round front. Windows parade around the circle, neatly topped by crisp roman blinds.

In the centre, french doors lead on to a faceted deck which follows the line of the circle. A firebox with tiled surround is the focal point for one of the sitting areas.

Beside this room, the cheery yellow dining-room sits next to a cosy TV room and the kitchen. Colourful, yet sophisticated, plum and grape-patterned fabrics dress the windows. Built-in, glass-fronted cabinets provide display space and storage.

At the other end of the house, the master bedroom opens through french doors to its own north-facing deck. Art Deco detailing shows in the urn and ribbon cornice and a curved wall. The en suite has been sympathetically finished in deep salmon and white tiles along with contemporary fittings. It has underfloor heating and a heated, mist-free mirror.

Next door, the second bedroom has plenty of wardrobe space as well as a built-in set of drawers. The third bedroom features a small bay window and the house's original Axminster carpet, a superbly preserved creation of colourful floral patterns.

The main bathroom sits beside the laundry and the hall which links the house to the double garage.

It is a haven of terracotta-coloured tiles, featuring a tiled bath plinth, a glazed shower and a stylish pedestal basin.

Outside, beyond the large back porch, a deck links the main house to the apartment and a separate office.

An established garden, complete with irrigation system, wraps around the front of the house and features a long narrow fish pond, bridge and mini waterfall. A row of hedging plants separates the garden from the paddock beyond.

It's this semi-rural setting that appeals to the owners. They speak of its peacefulness, yet closeness to the shops and amenities of the eastern suburbs.

And just down the road is the beach.