Text and Styling: Marian van Wyk. Photographs: Justin Patrick. Article from the December 2014 issue of Garden and Home Magazine.
An environmentally conscious Bakoven couple repurposed every brick when they converted their 1970s house into a bright contemporary family home
Who lives here
Deon, a chemical engineer, and British-born Katie, who works in public relations, as well as her daughter Daisy (13) and Deon’s son Karl (23) who visits from Durban. Golden retrievers Scooby and Snoop and Lola the Dachshund make up the rest of the family.
The house
A 1970s house in Bakoven, Cape Town converted into a double storey, with an open-plan living area that spills onto a deck upstairs. Downstairs are three bedrooms, three bathrooms and a TV room. A free-standing annex is all that remains of the original structure.
When Katie Home and Deon van Zyl bought their drab, viewless 1970s home in 2009, the couple had clear ideas about how they were going to realise its hidden potential.
The original home had few redeeming features other than its location, but the deal was clinched after Deon climbed onto the roof and saw the sea and mountain views. An avid mountaineer, Deon liked the fact that he could simply walk out the door and head up the mountain, where he often encounters meerkat and antelope on his regular runs and climbs.
While natural light, sea and mountain views and comfortable family living were priorities, the couple were adamant that they didn’t want a large house and that every piece of building material salvaged from the original house had to be reused.
Scatter cushions inject colour into the neutral living room, where sliding shutters provide privacy from the road without cutting out the mountain views. Cushions from the Paradise Is Here collection by Skinny laMinx. Picasso stool from Weylandts.
Both compact and functional, the kitchen is light and airy thanks to a glazed gable under the roof. Silver mosaic tiles on the splashback add a bit of sparkle. Daisy enjoys doing her homework at the counter, often kept company by Lola the Dachshund. Kitchen fitted by CH Croy Interiors. Blue glasses from Mr Price Home.
The family enjoys their boma year round, whether it’s a balmy summer evening or a clear winter night. Freshly cut cymbidiums echo the colours of the scatters.
“I also like a house to feel like a home and to that extent the use of warm, naturals such as wood and stone was helpful.”
“Deon and I consider the environment in everything we do and that was a large part of what informed our decision to recycle materials and not to have a house with a footprint any larger than necessary,” Katie says. “We wanted to be sure we would use every bit of space and that the architecture was sympathetic to its surroundings. I also like a house to feel like a home and to that extent the use of warm, natural materials such as wood and stone was helpful.”
The design ethos is reflected in the clutter-free interior and the simple shed-style architecture by James Weston of Shedkm Architects, who created a compact contemporary home that integrates well with the beach on one side and the rugged mountain landscape on the other. Describing the house as “modern, but not overtly so”, James says the exposed pitch roof and glazed gables are a familiar architectural language that most people can relate to. “If you ask a child to draw a house, that’s how it will look.”
While modern homes don’t always blend into the landscape, this house does so comfortably, thanks to the inclusion of natural stone and wood – most of which was salvaged from the original home.
“The Table Mountain Reserve on the one side and the sea on the other presented a fantastic opportunity for dual – rather than single-aspect views,” James adds, explaining that the view was maximised to 360 degrees by incorporating glass sliding doors along the length of the upstairs living area. These allow for a play between snug and spacious, while glazed gables on the two shorter walls behind the kitchen and living room, enhance the natural light. “It’s a useful device for getting both light and views without seeing one’s neighbours. Through one of these glazed gables you can see the cable car going up and down the mountain.”
Contemporary but comfortable furniture, most of which Katie brought from the UK, complements the architecture. In the double-volume living area two oversized pendant lamps form a striking focal point, which is visible from the exterior. “This room really needed some colour,” Daisy explains. “And my bachelor furniture was exiled to the TV room,” Deon laughs.
Bakoven is notorious for gale-force winds and harsh western sun in summer, but the climate seldom bothers this family. James positioned the house as a natural wind barrier so the patios on the coastal side are sheltered.
The couple were adamant that they wanted to keep the existing trees – in particular the spekbome (Porttilacaria afrtt), which actively convert carbon dioxide – and simply replanted them in the garden’s new layout.
This suited their ‘no waste’ approach and even the old roof tiles found a new home thanks to their builder. Although the house was only completed in 2010, it has a well-established garden with abundant bird life where the call of boubous is often heard. “Other eco elements include solar power and two rainwater tanks under the deck, which we use for watering the garden,” Deon says.
In summer the couple double the size of their living area by opening the glass sliding doors. Keen entertainers, they enjoy this seamless flow onto the deck when friends and frequent visitors from the UK arrive. And come Christmas, you will find them gathered around a fire at their boma with family and friends, cooling off in the swimming pool or playing boules in the garden.
While Katie enjoys Asian cooking, Deon takes charge of the fish and the braai. “Deon bakes bread too, anything from focaccia to beer bread, and I make the pudding,” Daisy says. “I love having Christmas here at home; the day just goes on and on into the night…”
What’s the best part of living here? Daisy is ready with an answer: “Every single night the sunset gives us a different view.”
Sources
@home home.co.za Baraka barakashop.co.za CH Croy Interiors 082 958 4286 Cube Joinery 072 776 4730 tao.s.burger@gmail.com Hertex hertex.co.za 0860 437 839 Lula Fabrics lulafabrics.co.za Mr Price Home mrphome.com Poetry poetrycollection.co.za Shedkm Architects shedkm.co.uk Skinny laMinx shop.skinnylaminx.com Weylandts weylandts.co.za Woolworths woolworths.co.za
Sources
@home home.co.za Chair Crazy chaircrazy.co.za Coricraft coricraft.co.za Hertex hertex.co.za LIM lim.co.za Mono Online Shop monoshop.co.za Mr Price Home mrphome.com Skinny laMinx skinnylaminx.com Touchee Feelee toucheefeelee.net Weylandts weylandts.co.za
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