26 Victoria Road, Stepneyville, Nelson

Simply gorgeous - villa above 'The Cut'

Simply gorgeous, this 1900s villa is a beautifully preserved icon of a gracious era, occupying one of Nelson's most desired locations with a jaw-dropping panorama through the Cut.
If you don't fall for the home ambience - the stunning timber floors, bay windows, lofty ceilings, coloured glass windows and the vista - the garden setting will do it. This wonderful home is embraced in a tranquil array of tropical plantings, dotted with glorious native specimens including pohutakawa.
It's truly restful, a welcome oasis, enjoying the rare benefit of access both from Fifeshire Crescent and Victoria Street. Harbour-front cafes are a short stroll away.
Three spacious bedrooms, including a master with mesmerising pillow views, and lovely lounging and entertaining areas and deck to watch the ships glide by make for elegant living.
It's a home that gently announces sheer quality; tasteful modernised without ever compromising the genteel atmosphere of the early 20th century. Half-panelled, diagonally-timbered walls, the patina of native floors (possibly matai), solid timber doors and architraves are all wonderfully preserved.
Entertainers will delight in the large, separate dining room, a stunning setting for memorable dinner parties.
Coloured and leadlight windows add to the sense of occasion in a home where you'll find so many little touches of late Victorian charm - in brass door handles, a glass-fronted cabinet, a sliding leadlight servery window.
The house has a large basement workshop, complete with benches, giving enormous storage capacity. A trellis-enclosed under the deck offers even more room for garden tools, firewood and so on.
Unusually, there's excellent parking off Fifeshire Crescent, with a double car port and room for other vehicles and another car port in Victoria Rd.
This is a one-of-a-kind for those wanting one of Nelson' s best locations and un-tramelled Victorian character while still leaving scope for sensitive updates.