Superbly private amid more than one acre of glorious mature gardens and offering views of the bay, this timeless four-bedroom architect-designed home typifies Mt Eliza's golden era as a quiet seaside retreat for Melbourne's well-to-do.Designed by renowned mid-century architect Marcus Martin, the sprawling weatherboard home and solar heated inground pool is surrounded by Edna Walling-inspired gardens featuring meandering paths, dry stone rock walls and a delightful mix of native and exotic plantings including Japanese maples, weeping pyrus, roses, blueberry ash, crepe myrtle and camellias.With views of the lovingly maintained gardens from every room, the home offers a rarely found gracious and relaxed atmosphere to enjoy with family and friends.A stone-paved patio bathed in northern light gives way to a wide gallery entrance hall dividing the home's accommodation and living wings, including a large formal lounge with open fireplace and picture window framing tree-top views of the bay, a formal dining room and a quiet sitting room also with an open fire.A kitchen and meals area includes stainless steel appliances and timber benchtops and leads out to a covered poolside alfresco with its own bathroom, while bedroom accommodation features a huge main bedroom with a wall of built-in robes, an ensuite and french doors to the gardens, a large guest bedroom and two other bedrooms that share the main bathroom.Only minutes from leading schools, the vibrant café scene of Mt Eliza village and beautiful beaches of Port Phillip Bay, other features include a leafy country lane setting, polished hardwood floors and wool carpets, ducted heating, airconditioning, corner allotment with driveway that snakes from one street frontage to the other, a carport, remote double garage and abundant visting birdlife.