Well suited to the rural surroundings of an equestrian estate, this comfortable family home has the rustic, traditional charm of Cape Dutch styling with a touch of French flair
WHO LIVES HERE
A professional couple and their three young daughters.
THE HOUSE
A double-storey, thatched family home on an equestrian estate. The large barn-like living space with sitting, dining and kitchen areas forms the spine of this L-shaped house.
Most people head to the coast for their holidays, but as this Cape Town family live in the seaside suburb of Bakoven, they do the opposite and head inland to take some time out. Their weekends are spent at their country home at Deltacrest equestrian estate outside Franschhoek.
Having bought the last available stand, the couple asked architect Wynand Wilsenach to help them build their ideal four-bedroom family home. It not only had to conform to the design guidelines of the estate – a Cape Dutch, whitewashed, thatched building – but also be easy to live in and have a good flow between the rooms. The end result is an attractive double-storey house that has a traditional feel and a friendly, modern rustic character.
With his attention to detail, Wynand also incorporated some delightfully inspired ideas into the design. One of them is the showers; instead of being enclosed in glass, the showers have chest-high, solid oak enclosures which were inspired by loose horse boxes.
The floors of the showers as well as the thresholds of every exterior doorway are of river pebble inlays, a nod to the river which flows through the estate.
Once the building was complete, next on the list was furnishing and decorating their home-from-home.
As she has three daughters of her own, Lorinda Smit of My Room Interior Design understood the owners’ need for spaces that would be easy to live in.
Lorinda was keen to create a sense that the furnishings had been passed down through generations and so scoured second-hand shops and antique stores to find everything, from the larger items to the embroidered napkins and antique china dinner service.