Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: A Multi-Level Clifftop Home Houses Two Generations
This flexible seaside home was designed for travelling parents and their grown-up kids, accommodating them all in style and comfort
Mark McLeay has designed a number of multi-unit apartments, but a single house that can be divided into two for two generations of the same family was a novelty for him. The owners have the joy of frequently travelling abroad, as does one of their adult kids. Another is a student, and the other two come and go. So when they briefed McLeay to build their house on a sloping section overlooking one of Auckland’s North Shore beaches, they wanted a house that could be divided off into two independent apartments.
Masonry block walls and concrete mid-floors, built on stepped platforms tucked into the dense trees, make up the structure of the house. The site allowed McLeay to push the building platform forward from the neighbours, providing unrestricted views to the sea.
As a feature for the lobby, MacLeay designed a curved plastered wall, made by craftsman Mike May. A smooth Italian marble and lime surface is finished with a wax coating for a timeless, hand-made finish. The custom colour took many tries before the right mix of dark charcoal with a hint of copper was achieved. This wall disguises the laundry and a bathroom, which are located behind it.
Milano Rockcote plaster finish: Resene; American oak stair treads: The Woodsmiths
Milano Rockcote plaster finish: Resene; American oak stair treads: The Woodsmiths
In the brief for the design, the clients requested future-proofing the house, so McLeay seamlessly included Lifemark principles, including a lift well and wide circulation areas. Open oak stair treads create an exciting play of shadows as the sun moves around the house. McLeay was careful to allow for cross ventilation so that the mostly-glass house does not become uncomfortable in the summer.
The upper floor is almost like a penthouse-style apartment, with one generous open-plan living room. The restrictions resulted in a cool upper floor that includes a covered terrace and a narrow pool, a design that satisfied both council planners and the clients. “With the upper decks, you have a penthouse effect; it feels international,” McLeay says.
“The three levels are designed to capture and frame the changing views of the sea and landscape throughout the day,” McLeay says. “Across all levels and rooms of this stunning site, decks extend living spaces and break up the building’s form.”
Light from the stairwell floods into the open-plan living room, and visitors get the immediate impact of the sea views as they ascend.
Light from the stairwell floods into the open-plan living room, and visitors get the immediate impact of the sea views as they ascend.
More of the Milano plaster finish features on the fireplace wall, one of the few dark notes in the otherwise all-white room. Despite all of the glass, the fireplace creates a cosy ambience on cooler days.
Real Fires Model 1200 Fireplace: Living Flame Fires
Real Fires Model 1200 Fireplace: Living Flame Fires
To one side of the fireplace McLeay added a smaller sitting area, which opens to the plunge pool.
The owner was keen to design her own kitchen, working with the team at Ace Kitchens to create the storage she was after. The warm buff benchtop is an engineered quartz, Prime Stone, in the colour ‘Rakaia’. To the left of the island is a pantry with a second sink. McLeay also tucked a guest toilet on this level, through a hidden door beyond the sideboard.
An American oak dining table was commissioned to repeat the warm tones of the stair treads. It was made to fit the space by craftsmen from Molloy Furniture. For the moment the couple are reusing dining chairs from their previous house, while they hunt for the perfect new chairs to complement the table and the cool white space.
Skylights: Velux
Skylights: Velux
Happy to bring furniture from their previous house into the new place, the owners kept their mix of water hyacinth and upholstered pieces in the space for a beachy feel.
Floor-to-ceiling glass doors capture and frame the changing views of the sea during the day, while operable louvres keep the dining terrace cool in the heat of the sun.
Tiles continue from the interior to the outdoor area, with a matt finish to minimise dazzle. The owners had their hearts set on huge-scaled tiles, settling on an 800 millimetre square to minimise lines and grouting.
200 MAXI aluminium louvres: Louvretec; tiles: SCE Stone and Design
200 MAXI aluminium louvres: Louvretec; tiles: SCE Stone and Design
Adding a plunge pool to the upper floor was challenging for the builders, but has completed the resort feel of the upper floor. The 2.5 x 3.5-metre pool can be heated for year-round use.
On the middle level of the home, a corner rumpus room offers views to the east and up the bays, and the master bedroom has privacy from the neighbours, but floor-to-ceiling windows open to the sea views.
The owners and McLeay had debated over whether to have the master bedroom on the same floor as the living area. They chose to go down a level, and dedicate the top floor to a more expansive living and entertaining space and to fit in that pool. To their delight, the owners discovered that this level was still high enough to get tree-framed ocean views, with enough frosting to keep the rooms private from walkers on the clifftop track. Pocket doors can be closed for privacy when the bathroom is in use, or left open to share the expansive views.
The indulgent master ensuite includes a walk-in shower and a custom vanity, with a tub in front of the windows for more views of the sea. The owners specified the same tiles on walls and floor, but using a rectangular 600 x 300 millimetre wall tile to contrast with the square tile on the floor.
The stone-composite tub was chosen for its fine lines, but the builders were unimpressed when it came time to lift it into the bathroom – it weighs 150 kilograms.
Babylon Grey tile: Mobile Ceramics; Forme tub: VCBC
Babylon Grey tile: Mobile Ceramics; Forme tub: VCBC
McLeay tucked the adult children’s apartment on the bottom level. There is also a kitchenette and sitting room on this level, all opening to a generous deck with a barbecue. This level has its own external entrance, as well as shared access to the stair and lift well.
Two generous double bedrooms, each with ensuite bathrooms, can be used either for the couple’s grown-up children when they visit, or for guests.
A small sitting area and an adjoining kitchenette mean the kids can live in the house independently, and the upper floors can be locked off when the parents are travelling.
TELL US
How would you design a home to accommodate multiple generations of adults? Share your ideas in the Comments.
How would you design a home to accommodate multiple generations of adults? Share your ideas in the Comments.
Who lives here: An empty-nest couple and their four sometimes-live-in adult kids
Location: North Shore, Auckland, New Zealand
Size: 338 square metres over all levels; 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 3 living rooms
Architectural designer: Mark McLeay, Marian Kubes, Creative Arch
Build duration: 18 months
The couple gave McLeay a fairly open brief. “We left the style up to Mark; we liked what he came up with,” explains one of the owners. “For me, it was more about the inside, and to make the most of the views. It was a challenging site.”
McLeay’s response to fitting in the entertaining and living areas the owners wanted was to cascade the house down the hill. Plans were constrained by a close neighbour on one side of the property, dense native flora – mainly Auckland’s iconic pohutukawa trees – and a public clifftop walkway on the northern side, and a tight building coverage allowance.