By Linda Doke, Project Consultant Candice Jin, Property Coordinator Chantel Spence, Photographer Nic Baleta
Rustic comfort of a farmhouse, blended with the uncluttered simplicity of an industrial-style build, is what the owner of this Gauteng home had dreamed about.
“My requirements of the design were specific: I wanted our home to be single-storey, with large, spacious living areas, an open-plan feel, and a lot of light,” explains the home owner. “It needed to be something original – not only visually different, but unique to us as a family and, importantly, reflective of what we love out of life.”
The house is situated on a golf and wildlife estate, with large tracts of natural grassland and herds of free-roaming game, exuding the true essence of wide-open African spaces. Being active people with a passion for the outdoors and the bush, natural textures and solid surfaces best represented the family’s lifestyle.
Using a combination of rough brick, exposed wooden beams and gabion-style rock-based metal pillars, the entrance to the home has earthy hues, in keeping with the bucolic feel of the Highveld. The living room, with its deep-seated leather couches, wooden tables and single-pitched concrete ceiling, carries a snug, nook-type appeal when the full-length shutters are closed, yet becomes a bright, airy entertainment area, leading out to the lawn and pool, when the two sections of shutter doors along the full length of the north-facing wall are stacked.
“We love entertaining, and often have large groups of friends and family over for braais. Being able to open the stacking doors allows us to be indoors if the weather is cold or rainy, yet feel outside,” says the owner.
Separated from the living room by industrial steel pillars and a freestanding cast-iron, wood-burning stove, the spacious double-volume dining area uses wood and metal to strike a casual balance between farmhouse and industrial.
The dining area has a natural flow into what the home owner admits to be her favourite section of her home: the kitchen.
“I wanted a basic kitchen, and one that is funky, but not fussy,” she says. The brushed stainless steel of the countertops, the twin extractor fans, wall-length splashback and central island complement the lime-green and dark-blue colour combination of the deep wooden drawers. Stencilled numbers and words on some of the cupboards and drawers add a touch of mischief and humour to what is clearly the warm heart of this home.
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