Muriwai: Time and tide

The couple who built this dramatic beach house are glad they didn't rush its design.
2 Berridge Road, Muriwai.

Jane Bailey and Brent Hollister spent three summers camping out on their section at Muriwai thinking about the kind of house they would build, and Jane says it was time well spent.

"Our original plans changed quite substantially. At first we thought we'd have the whole west face open toward the view, but after we'd been here a while we realised 'That's a bit dumb - that's where the wind comes from,' The living areas needed to be north facing. It was good to have a few years to just think about things like that - watching the light move and the effect of the seasons."

The house they ended up with is a dramatic statement on the clifftop above Maori Bay, next to the long sweep of Muriwai Beach. Close collaboration with architect Mark Smith and builder Andrew McNabb produced a clean rectangular box with the front cantilevered toward the sea. The great glass windows across the front capture the westerly storms rolling in from the Tasman, and breathtaking sunsets casting colours up the black Muriwai sands. The upper and lower decks, however, face north, providing shelter from the prevailing wind but still allowing sight of the coast.

To retain its clean lines, the wide, weather-shielding eaves normally seen on beach houses were dispensed with. Instead the roof was double flashed, and the house double clad. First a Hardibacker skin was erected, then battened to create a cavity, over which came the outer cladding of tight-knot macrocarpa, which was all hand-nailed. This created a completely weatherproof, and very warm house. Jane says they only turned a heater on about 10 times last winter. Such practical efforts are mixed with artistic touches. A boardwalk "bridge" from the driveway to the front door crosses a dry river of local rocks. This was Jane's idea.

"There's a creek that runs under this site, so I used that as a metaphor to put under the boardwalk. I wanted to reflect what's going on in this area and use materials from around here, and from local suppliers, as much as possible."

The polished concrete and aggregate floor in the entranceway was laid by a Kumeu firm; and the kwila stairs were made by a local cabinetmaker.

The stairs float up from the front door, through a void with glass on either side so that you can see straight through the house. This glass tower separates the two halves of the house, and a bridge at the top of the stairs connects them. To the left are two bedrooms and a bathroom, positioned at the cool eastern end of the house with the master looking up into a green valley ablaze with pohutukawa flower at Christmas. To the right is the open plan kitchen, dining and living area stretching toward the view out those windows at the front. The upper deck leads off from the side.

Downstairs is a huge garage with room for two cars as well as Brent's dirt bike and quiver of surfboards. On the other side of the light well is the second bathroom and another big bedroom which Jane, a graphic designer, and Brent, a telecommunications consultant, use as an office.

"We were living in Western Springs before, but Brent, who grew up surfing in Whakatane and New Plymouth, wanted to get back out to the coast," says Jane. "We chose Muriwai because we felt it was more commutable than some of the other west coast beaches - it's only 40 minutes into town off peak on straight roads."

Two years after the house's completion, the couple now have two children and another due in June. Their growing family is partly why they're moving on, particularly as an opportunity to build a bigger home has presented itself on the east coast near Whangarei.

Jane says the thing she will miss the most is something she didn't expect to find at the beach - a strong sense of community.

She also loves the way her son Tomas, now 3, is growing up to think it's normal to go to the beach or for a bush walk every day.

"We don't even have a TV - he and now Rosa [who's 1] are always busy outside or with friends around here. It's kind of an old-fashioned way to grow up, a quieter, slower way of living, and I think that's pretty cool."

Vital Statistics

BEDROOMS: 3

BATHROOMS: 2

GARAGE: 2+

SIZE: Land 875sq m, house 212sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: Upwards of $650,000. Auction March 1.

INSPECT: Sat/Sun 1-2pm, Wed 7.30-8.30pm.

CONTACT: Lindy Kawharu, Bayleys, ph 0274 991 865, 09 417 0017.

FEATURES: Mark Smith-designed double-clad house with sweeping views. Imported Italian kitchen with German appliances. Downstairs bedroom/study opens to its own deck. Oversize garage and workshop.