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There's a meeting of worlds in this large, carefully designed home, which was built in three stages on 44ha, writes Robyn WelshLines, curves and hemispheres are at the heart of the home that German-born landscape engineer Harald Decker designed for his family following their arrival in New Zealand in 1986.
Harald and Vivian took their time finding the right spot on their land, which they bought in 1988. They opted not for the most obvious building plot near the road, but for the more sheltered, private site at the end of their block of land. "There was no rational to it. It was more about what felt right," he says.
They took their time building the only New Zealand home they've owned. In doing so, they have embraced the two most important elements -- the farmhouse style of northern Europe and the integration of features in native New Zealand timber that all tell their own stories.
"The house is not an exact copy of the Northern Hemisphere farmhouse but the feeling is right," says Harald. "It reminds us of our heritage and that helped us tremendously when we settled in."
But before any of that translated into a construction start date, Harald marked out and built the large sweeping pond and boardwalk that is framed by two willow and three swamp cypress trees.
That first project completed, attention turned to the house, which was built in three stages over several years.
"We really built three houses," he says. Interestingly, Harald designed this five-bedroom house and its two-bedroom granny flat from the outside in.
"I placed the dormer windows so that they lined up with the garage doors and the lower windows. That dictated the internal layout of those upper rooms. I needed to look at the balance of the house from the outside and I think I achieved that balance."
Image 1 of 4: There's a meeting of worlds in this large, carefully designed home, which was built in three stages on 44ha.
It took shape first as an L-shaped single level dwelling with bedrooms and living areas looking out to the pond. Later the upper-storey bedrooms, office and lounge were added, along with the end workshop/commercial wing with its gabled, garage door and the upper-storey self-contained unit. Of that garage Harald says, "it is tall enough for a boat, or a horse and float. It's by the commercial wing of the house but designed so that it is part of the house".
The interior of the house with its Douglas fir ceiling beams is just as interesting. The terracotta tiles were bought early in the project and stacked outside until they were ready to be laid. Harald spotted the leadlight windows at a demolition yard while hunting for something else, but he knew exactly how to incorporate them into his design to add elegance to the bedroom.
In the entrance, the timber panelling originated from the historic His Majesty's Theatre in Auckland, demolished in 1987. The stairs were crafted from the rafters of the old Glen Innes police station and finished with balustrades that Harald specified with a subtle art deco influence.
In the entrance, Harald incorporated two archways into the design leading to the kitchen, dining and living areas on one side and two bedrooms and a small office on the other.
Throughout the house there is a significant connection with the landscaped grounds, including a smaller pond beyond the back door and a private, resort-style conservatory bathroom.
"The house has developed as we've built it and developed little ideas, which is sometimes better than having it all pre-determined at the design stage," says Harald. Now they're turning their attention to downsizing to their next new house.
