Living for eight years in an old bach on their waterfront property not only gave Anne-marie and Jeff Marsh a feel for the site but also provided some design cues for their new home.
"It was a tiny, ramshackle bach that we called the Love Shack, and living there all those years gave us an idea of how the wind and the sun worked," says Anne-marie.
"It had a mono-pitch roof with bits added on to it and that gave [architectural designer] Fraser Gillies the idea of designing something that was a little bit pavilion-ish."
Anne-marie says he also stepped the home down the gently sloping section so it sat more naturally with the land.
Clad mostly with a textured Linea weatherboard and some plaster with a cavity system, the two-storey home has varying roof planes, including gull wings over the garage and kitchen/family room.
Fan light windows make the deep-eaved roofline appear to float.
"My best friend's husband [Mark Conway] built the house and he did a great job," says Anne-marie. Rather than build as close as possible to the water, they sat the house back so that they could have outdoor living space, lawn and gardens between the house and the harbour.
"We built the new house, then knocked down the Love Shack and then built the garage in its place."
Sitting to the south of the house, the garage has had one of its triple bays turned into a media room.
"It's set up with a big TV and surround sound system," says Anne-marie. "It has external access so could be used as an office or it could be turned back into a garage."
From the garage you step down into the house where there are three bedrooms and a bathroom on the ground floor.
The laundry opens out to a hidden utility area, while the living spaces are on the seaward side of the house, enjoying water views.
The kitchen/family room also opens to the northwest-facing patio, as does the lounge. Upstairs, the master suite has a walk-in wardrobe, and an en suite with water views also shared by a balcony off the bedroom.
Gudrun Fischer designed the landscaping, which was done in stages after some old pines and overgrowth were removed to open up the section and the harbour view.
A pohutukawa, which was being suffocated by the pines, is now the centrepiece of the garden that slopes towards the water with paths meandering down to the shore.
The family enjoyed sailing, kayaking and boating from their property as well as fishing off the neighbour's jetty.
"There's a reserve across the water with hiking and biking tracks and there are also two lovely little sandy beaches you can kayak to for a picnic."
Ann-marie and Jeff plan to move up north to spend more time on an old launch they have bought.
