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Rural Hawke’s Bay may not sound like a typical location for a holiday home, but it’s proved to be an ideal choice for three busy Wellington professionals: lawyer Kathy Ertel, Janine Stewart, senior manager for IHC, and Carmel Daly, a consultant to the health and service sector.
The hot tub looks out over rolling hills to the Tuki Tuki River.
The trio, who are good friends, realised they shared similar aspirations and decided to fulfil that vision together. “We all liked the idea of a holiday house and thought it made economic sense to share one,” says Carmel.
Their plans, which included “some ridiculous ideas”, took shape and were refined over a couple of years. “We all came away for a weekend to Hawke’s Bay, where Carmel’s family lives, and sat down and made a wish list: ‘by the sea’ and ‘near cafes’ were eliminated and ‘tranquil place’ and ‘nice views’ affirmed,” says Janine.
It was 2006 before they found a 4.7-hectare piece of land at Patangata in Central Hawke’s Bay, 48 kilometres from Hastings. The hilltop site overlooks a peaceful landscape of rolling hills with the Tuki Tuki River snaking away in the distance. “Initially I was dubious because of the distance
from town but when I saw it I thought it was spectacular,” Carmel says.
They wanted to achieve two things when building their house: simplicity and clean, open spaces. Kathy was keen to play around with the concept of the Freemason’s Rule, which uses a measuring system of particular cuts and proportions. “It’s a concept that’s designed to create a feeling of harmony in a room,” says Janine. “We employed a draughtsman who easily achieved a plan that we all agreed on.”
Further inspiration came from Black Barn Vineyard in Havelock North where they’d stayed one weekend. “We liked its peaked ceilings and board-and-batten exterior,” she says.
Taking charge of project management, Janine coaxed a friend, Dunedin builder Chris Dyer with whom she’d worked previously, to construct the house. An added inducement for Chris was the opportunity to live onsite, far from the southern winter. Chris and his team completed the build in 2007.
“It had to be affordable, environmentally sustainable, stylish and uncomplicated,” says Carmel. “Chris was able to take our ideas and refine them, adding nifty details of his own – the use of rough-hewn timber, corrugated iron around the fireplace and placement of the decks.”
An extra-thick concrete pad foundation and double-glazed windows retain heat and the Colorsteel corrugated iron ceilings are low maintenance. “Having to work on the house when we visited wasn’t part of our plan,” says Carmel.
Kathy and Carmel had fun poring over interior colour schemes. Their choices were guided by the earthy tones of the rural outlook and pebble aggregate floors, combined with the artwork and furniture they already owned, including the huge table which once did its civic duty in the Maniototo County Council rooms.
Enthusiasm for buying items on TradeMe ran high. Janine’s best purchase was a container load of jarrah timber – formerly used on a Queensland wharf – that Chris put to creative use as a kitchen benchtop, fireplace surround, support beams and garden borders.
“There are a couple of things we overlooked,” says Carmel. “The kitchen bench is too narrow so eventually we’ll alter that. And we had to make the driveway larger as we always end up with lots of people – this place is a magnet.” >
Sharing their holiday home has proved as harmonious as their friendship. “It’s been really straightforward,” says Carmel. “We have different reasons for going there; I go about every six weeks for longer periods, often to spend time with family. It’s easy to have visitors because we’ve created separate spaces so people can be together and have time to themselves. We specifically built a room out the back for the kids [her nieces and nephews] so they can do their own thing.”
“Kathy and I go there every few weeks,” says Janine. “We love to potter around on our own or relax with friends. It’s a fabulous place for clay target shooting and fly fishing. We also like to go kayaking on the river; we get dropped off at the bridge and float down, then I cycle furiously back up the hill and pick up the car.”
The trio have affectionately dubbed their holiday haven the Cows’ Shed. It’s a name that simply took their fancy but it also reflected a rural desire to own cattle. “Our neighbours look after our two miniature Highland cattle Dudley and Buster, mow our lawns and do a fantastic job of keeping an eye on the place,” says Janine.
“It’s been great getting to know some of the locals,” adds Carmel. “I think we were a bit of a mystery at first and it didn’t help that we were always hurrying through.”
The women say they enjoy making good use of their kitchen. They’ve discovered a butcher’s shop in Waipawa that sells excellent sausages, the growers’ market at Black Barn and Bolderson’s Urban Food Store in Havelock North. And, naturally, high-quality Hawke’s Bay wine is easy to come by.
Future plans include landscaping to complement, yet not detract from, the views. “We’re still deciding what to do next,” says Carmel. “We’d like more shelter but don’t want a big garden; the landscape is really our garden. We love to sit on the deck and watch the shadows on the hills at the end of the day – it’s a very satisfying place to be.”
Click on the "photo gallery" link at top right for more images from this story, including web exclusive photos.
Story: Vivienne Haldane
Photographs: Tessa Chrisp
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