St Heliers: Bush baby

Cool, sandy tones of the limestone floors emphasise the serenity that is found in the bush setting. Picture / Frank Breslin

Who would have thought it - a fabulous retreat in a splendid bush setting, and all at a city address.

It was not the beautiful beaches but the splendid native bush that so enthralled a French Canadian couple when they came to New Zealand.

Five years ago, business enticed Louis Bolanger and Louise Gavin from Christchurch to Auckland. They couldn't believe their luck when they found a large section hidden along a right-of-way in a little-known valley of St Heliers, totally surrounded by a kanuka bush reserve protected by the Royal Forest & Bird Society.

The approach to the property down the long drive and over a bridge makes it all the more enticing. It transports you about as far from the typical suburban scene as you can imagine.

To Louis and Louise, this was the most special place they had ever encountered, deserving a home that took full advantage of its amazing outlook. For this, they sought a design by award-winning architects Fearon Hay, one of the leading architectural firms in the country.

Fearon Hay gave them a home with customary modern lines clad in dark-stained weatherboards, which stand out against the natural leafy green tones.

Through the floor-to-ceiling windows in the large living area, the views through the bush with its textural tapestry of foliage are quite intoxicating. The canopy is lit at night so the enjoyment continues no matter what the hour.

It's a tall, open-plan space with an open Jetmaster fire surrounded by a feature of stacked sandstone. The flooring is Italian limestone, giving a cool, calm feel to the room. Yet it's never cold thanks to the underfloor heating.

On the north-west side, the kitchen and dining area have a sense of separation a few steps down from the sitting area, where glass sliders glide back and open the room to a terrace overlooking the bush.

Centrally positioned in the kitchen, a huge American oak table accommodates the hob beneath a custom-made stainless-steel extractor suspended from the ceiling. The table was designed to be totally functional as a huge chopping board, however the owners have refrained from putting a knife onto the surface for fear of spoiling its appearance. Open shelving below the table gives easy access to cooking utensils, plates and pots. More storage is gained in a deep pantry hidden behind the taupe, metallic-finish cupboards, which reach right up to the ceiling. A larger-than-normal fridge-freezer is also found behind these cupboard doors.

Behind the main living area is a media-television room, the control centre for an impressive B&W surround-sound system that's fed throughout the two levels of the home.

Four bedrooms are found up the American oak stairs that lead off the entry, where there is a guest toilet and large laundry. All except one of the bedrooms has a walk-in wardrobe, providing plenty of room for the teenage boys to stash their bits and pieces. The master suite has its own bathroom with dual shower heads in the glass shower, but there was not enough room for the bath. So the owners decided to give it pride of place, raised slightly on a platform of tiles in the bedroom itself where they can lie back and soak in the beauty of the bush through louvre windows.

Landscaping around the house deftly balances the wildness of the bush with touches of Japanese-style formality. The guest entry to the pivoting front door steps up beside rectangular reflection ponds interspersed between thin beds of mondo grass. Restraint is the order of the day, for both architects and their clients saw no point in making a major statement in the garden when the bush already did that for them.

Close to the beach and the city, this is an award-winning home that celebrates its setting, providing a luxurious escape from civilisation.