When you work in visual industries like film and television, it is not surprising that you have a pretty good appreciation of well-designed space. Film directors and producers Julia and Wayne Leonard do sheepishly admit that has led them to a gypsy life, changing houses every two years, on average.
"We've had 10 houses in eight different suburbs, from Grey Lynn to Titirangi, all over," laughs Julia. "Each of them was different. We'd just see one and fall in love with it and make an offer."
Four years in their current house is the longest they've stayed put. They are moving now only because they need to be closer to the pool where their daughter, a representative swimmer, trains twice a day -- the hour-long round trip is eating into family time.
You can sense their reluctance, as the two storeyed townhouse tucked down a right-of-way on the Hobson Bay side of Parnell is a gem. It was an early example of how well-designed density can work close to the city: the house was designed by English architect Graeme Campbell for himself and his wife, fashion designer Tatjana Windhager, in 1992. Using split levels, spaces opening off each other and soaring, plywood-lined ceilings, Campbell fitted a lot of house into a very small space. Tatjana added the master bedroom suite in 2005, but the bones of the house and its clever siting on its plot have stood the test of time.
