122 GOAT ISLAND RD, LEIGH, RODNEY Size (more or less):
The term “lifestyle property” takes on a new meaning when Marguerite Guinness uses it to describe the way she and her late husband lived on their land near Leigh. They bought the 2ha block and built their home there in 2004, establishing an almost self-sufficient lifestyle that included working on the property, daily swims at the beach, taking the donkey for walks, and sitting in the outdoor bath in the evening listening to the birds calling.
The outdoor bath on the deck was Marguerite’s favourite place.
“It had a little screen if you wanted to be pure, but when there’s only two of you there . . . I’m a bath person so I used the bath every night.
“I would lie there, watch the birds go to bed and listen to them calling out. The last one to call out was always the tu¯¯ı.”
The house is a modern take on a country home, clad in corrugated iron, with aluminium bi-folds allowing the indoor and outdoor spaces to merge. Interesting shapes and rooflines give the house the look of a seagull.
“The process for designing it was that my husband told the architect what he wanted and they put it together from that,” Marguerite says.
There’s a big kitchen, dining area, two living areas, three bedrooms and two bathrooms, and every room is filled with character.
The interior walls are lime-washed with Porters Paint and have an organic look. The high, raked ceilings with their bespoke rafters are paint-washed and polyurethaned, and polished kwila floors in the living areas complete the country look.
The house lends itself to an eclectic collection of character furniture and one special piece is staying behind for the new owners.
It’s the 100-year-old kitchen island bench which came from a Timaru drapery. All the fabric bolts were kept underneath, and originally it had a yard tape on the top. Leigh’s median house price has risen 68% in 5 years. OneRoof.co.nz Land 20,550sq m, home 255sq m, plus outdoor decks. By negotiation. Call to view. Mahurangi College, Leigh School, Pakiri School. MarieDominique Lennan, LJ Hooker, 021 490039.
“The kitchen was probably my favourite indoor space — I was always in there,” Marguerite says. “Although it was just the two of us here, the four kids were all close by so there were not many days without some family members around.
“We had the snug completely sound-proofed so the kids could be in there with the doors closed.”
The outdoor living areas also provided plenty of space for family, with decks on the east, west and north sides of the house.
Marguerite and Grattan ran 10 sheep on the property, had 15 hens and a vegetable garden. The vegetable patch is totally fenced to keep the possums and pu¯keko out, and Marguerite grew strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.
There are also ornamental gardens with dahlias, cannas and bulbs against a backdrop of native trees, and a cute cottage.