Herne Bay: Love me tender

A couple overcame their reluctance about entering into tendering for properties when they found the ideal home.

19 Lawrence St, Herne Bay.

When internationally acclaimed New Zealand artist John Hadwen returned to live in New Zealand with his American wife Eileen in 2003, finding a house on Herne Bay's northern slopes was not difficult, but coping with the tender process was.

Eileen remembers how after initially attempting to avoid properties being sold by tender, after three weeks of looking John just said, ``We are going for this one, because we like what we see.''

Luckily they got what they wanted and at a price that made sense.
``And the bonus is that it came with a two-bedroom garden flat below the house. The rent from that allowed us to set aside a travel budget. I would finish a job somewhere in the world and John would join me and we would spend time in all these fantastic places - Shanghai, Sikkim; it was all good.''

Eileen's high-pressure career as an engineering consultant takes her all over the world. ``I come hurrying back because I miss the calm sense of place this house has, with its view of the harbour through the trees and the tuis with their two-tone songs in the pohutukawas in the back garden.''

When they bought it, the house was by no means perfect. For a start it had a wonderful yellow colour scheme from the 80s in some rooms. ``That had to go. Luckily when one of you is an artist, choosing colours to enhance what's good in a room, like the natural warmth of the wood floors, is not a problem.''

The Hadwens also worked to make the neglected gardens their own. ``Ben, our son, some friends and John put in the hard yards on the dry stack stone walls which create the terraces for the three planting areas, something they did for our house in Colorado in 2000. Rebecca, our daughter, planted out the terraces around the Bluestone steps in a wonderful combination of natives and exotics.

She had plenty of natural endurance after seven summers climbing Ponderosa pines in the Grand Canyon as a field technician studying goshawks.

``Because we all did things to make it ours, it feels very much a home even though the time spent here has not been huge. Ben is now off in London but I only have to look at those steps to remember him labouring away on them with John and Rebecca.''

The house, with its rear deck extending out through the bi-fold doors opening from the living room and the private patio opening through the French doors of the two bedrooms in the front, has wonderful flow in both directions.

``Because it's got those east and west outdoor areas at both ends we could sit out and have our morning and afternoon teas in either sun or shade depending on the season. Because of the work we do, and spending time at home in the day, this flow was very important.''

What they didn't appreciate until they had lived there for a while was how the deep northern eaves over the dining room kept the summer heat out while allowing the lower winter sun to penetrate. ``It warms right through here with a sort of natural radiance which is so nice to live in.''

The house, with its roomy three bedrooms and large family bathroom feels open, yet intimate, and although it doesn't yet have an en suite the master bedroom is constructed ready for it to be installed so as to minimise plumbing costs. All these plans came to a standstill with John's untimely deathlast year. Eileen, however, sees that life is a journey and she will move on.

``While I love it here so much, it makes sense that I base myself for my work in the States. I'll return to Boulder, Colorado where we lived for the decade preceding our move here but New Zealand will always be home, too.
``After all, John and I were married on Te Mata Peak, overlooking Hawkes Bay, so a part of me will always remain.''

VITAL STATISTICS

BEDROOMS: 5

BATHROOMS: 2

GARAGES: 1

SIZE: Land 470sq m, house 150sq m (approx), flat 42 sq m (approx).

PRICE: CV $1.06 million. Auction July 26 at 11am (unless sold prior).

INSPECT: Sat/Sun 12.30-1pm.

CONTACT: Carl Madsen, Barfoot and Thompson Ponsonby, ph 376 3039 or 021 953 152.

ON THE WEB: www.barfoot.co.nz/344184.

FEATURES: A sunny spacious home on Herne Bay's golden slopes, with the added bonus of a two-bedroom self-contained flat underneath.