Lei

From day one, this company has been all about big ideas and a culture that feels like creativity in motion.

I’ve had the pleasure of being their design consultant for many years, watching them grow from a start up into a confident, culture driven team. I’ve witnessed their journey of growth, maturity and creative ambition along the way and have taken great pride in each addition we have created and built for them.

As exciting as this project was for the team, this was a big move for the company, physically moving 200+ from their existing space and all the admin and emotions that came with that.

We needed the new space to feel like a fresh chapter: a more evolved, refined space that still captures the heart of their identity and the culture they’ve worked so hard to build. A celebration of where they’ve come from and a confident step toward where they’re headed next.

In some aspects we adopted a  “lift and shift’ approach to the design, reusing whatever made sense and worked within the main narrative. We evolved the main elements of their existing design concepts, using the same colour palette and contemporary styling, taking it up a notch wherever possible. We wanted the team to be able to walk into the new offices on day 1 and for it to feel familiar and their own. The space needed to still incorporate urban living, an ode to their past premises: think cafe culture, street lamps and urban vibes.

The new space is a celebration of bold colours, brave ideas, playful design and a culture that celebrates every kind of brain. This design embraces their quirk and their creative thinking in a very grown up world.

A fun inspiring project with the smartest nicest humans on the planet.

 

 

2024 ended off on such a high, with the completion of this truly grand old dame for this cool young family.

Synergy with my clients is so important for me as it helps maintain the smooth sailing of a project in an environment that is stormy seas at best. What I enjoyed about these cool cats is that they weren’t newbies to the renovation process and thus understood the intricacies that a project such as this entails.

Their brief was detailed and precise and their feedback was given in a cohesive and informative way, allowing for good communication throughout the project.  Their critical eye for finer details and absolute obsession with clean contemporary Japandi styling was the driving force of making these spaces such a success.

Walking into this space on a gloomy Winters day for the first time, it was immediate the potential this home had.  High ceilings, beautiful wooden floors and an ability to create cohesive flow between all the key living spaces.

We used clean contemporary design as the driving force in the large dramatic spaces, allowing us to be more playful and quirky in certain areas, creating a real balance between the old and the new. The result was a celebration of  the grand old dame but also bringing a youthful element to the table.

We shipped off the family to live upstairs, making their guest room a make shift kitchen, and set to work making their vision a reality in a few short months. Despite no projects coming without their own challenges, each of these here were tackled in the right manner with the right energy, and resulted in a rewarding project for the team, with the end results speaking for themselves.

A beautiful family with a beautiful home.

The Brief:

Renovate the ground floor and annex, creating a new large entertainment area, bar, study, guest room and 2 bathrooms.

Renovate the kitchen, scullery and guest loo, creating a small wine storage area under stairs.

Redo the paving around pool and tiling on stoep area and redo the landscaping.

 

Before: 

 

 

The Transformation:

• breakthrough of annex space to create large entertainment area with study, bathrooms, guest room and bar area
• redesign and renovate 1 bathroom and 2 guest bathrooms with new tiles, fixtures, custom joinery and fittings.
• redesign and renovate kitchen with new joinery and flooring
• redesign and renovate scullery with new joinery and flooring
• removal of walls and opening of walls with new arches
• new aluminium windows and doors throughout ground floor
• updating electricals and replacing existing light fittings with new
• paintwork throughout
• new small wineroom
• new lighting
• new wood burner and gas fireplace
• new curved bar area
• wood panelling in living room
• paving and tiling of exterior spaces
• landscaping

Biggest Challenge:

Crazy paving – ain’t for the faint hearted!

Best feature:

The new archways – they create so many beautiful views of the various spaces and stop me in me tracks each time I arrive on site.

AFTER: 

 

Life is certainly fast paced.

Possibly the understatement of the year, but if I am only getting around to posting projects from 2022/ 2023 then that says something. Whilst the past few years have literally gone through in a nano second, they have taught me how little control we have over what can happen in daily life and why we should take the reins over all that we can.  Find what gives you joy and strap it to your back and ride into the sunset. This particular project was not only a great source of joy for me but also a constant reminder on how important it is to make your space your happy place.

What started off as a request for a very quick and simply renovation became a complete overhaul of every surface and room, taking care to finesse the details and making this a space oozing with European sophistication, creativity and flair. Mr Understated Elegance was one of those clients we all seek, inspired and passionate about what he does and making sure his space is a reflection of that.  He had a vision of what he wanted the end result to be, and whilst it was fluid and allowed to evolve, he refused to settle or sacrifice on the details. For me its so inspiring to work with clients that are passionate about life and work and make the renovation a journey rather than a job. As much as he pushes the boundaries of animation and whats possible in his work life, so too did he bring that same philosophy to this project. It became a great collaboration of minds and it was joyful to see him push the boundaries of what was possible with this small apartment.

 

The Brief:

Renovate a 2 bedroom flat, gutting 2 bathrooms and a kitchen and redoing and creating an upstairs secret cinema room.

 

BEFORE:

 

The Transformation:

• redesign and renovate 2 bathrooms with new tiles, fixtures, custom joinery and fittings.
• redesign and renovate kitchen with new joinery
• removal of wall to enlarge space kitchen space
• new herringbone wood flooring
• new aluminium windows and doors, with stone top sills
• updating electricals and replacing existing light fittings with new
• paintwork throughout
• new frameless balustrades
• new fireplace and plinth
• furniture and decor

Biggest Challenge:

Working in a small space is always a challenge, but we navigated how to get that feeling of luxury and flow.

Best feature:

Secret cinema room for the win!

Close seconds are the stone tops in the kitchen, the fireplace forest green marble plinth, the bathrooms, the master bedroom headboard and feature wall, the bathrooms vanities, the Buster and punch handles, the lighting, the custom couch, the wallpapered hallway and the herringbone floors.

 

AFTER:

Tall clients has seemingly become my middle name and Mr and Mrs HD & N were no exception.  During the throws of the pandemic I got a phone call out of the blue from a lovely couple who I then met up with, masked to the hilt, in a coffee shop. They had bought a 2 bed apartment in an older block in town and the layout was just not working for them. They had a very tight galley kitchen and bathroom , resulting in Mr HD &N spending most of his time stooping to either cook or shower.

They knew exactly what they wanted but needed someone to help pull it all together, manage the design process and the project management in its entirety.  I love working with dynamic creatives and these two were no exception. We had a shared vision for the end result and it was refreshing for me to work with a slightly more mid century modern look and feel once again.

For a variety of paperwork issues, the project was put on hold and it was only quite a few months later that I got a call once again from them. Since I had last seen them they had snuck in a little wedding and were now set and rearing to go ahead. Luckily I had a small gap in schedules and we decided to jump head first in and start a mere two weeks or so later.

One flew to america, the other to Johannesburg and I got handed the keys to get on with it, which is my absolute best!

 

Life has felt really hard this week since yet another Cyril evening announcement and I’m one of the lucky ones where my work is gratefully largely unaffected. We have learnt to dread and fear these evening soirees in equal measure, and live in a constant state of limbo not knowing truly what the future holds. Since our lock down last year we have learnt to stay nimble, that plans that can change at a drop of hat and one should always have the bar fridge fully stocked. Whilst my initial love of lock down has somewhat dwindled since March/ April 2020, what I have really held true is our intent to create beautiful spaces.

When I started this business almost 7 years ago, it was ALL about the people, and that remains unchanged. There is something truly priceless about working with real people, real families, real businesses and transforming their spaces into something magical that speaks to them. More than ever our spaces are sacred, a place that is solely ours, a reflection of self and most importantly a place we spend 99% of our time from now until who knows when.

It seems fitting for the first and last post of the dreaded year that is 2020 to be the project that seemed it would never end.

Whilst I have so many wonderful adjectives to name this couple as, “In for the Long Haul” was the only one that seemed to be the pertinent choice. Some hair raising structural challenges were endured, a screed floor that simply refused to dry and then was colour batched wrong and had to be redone and some intense rain that caused further delays were but a few of the challenges we faced. The ultimate cherry on bloody top was of course a major world pandemic hitting us smack in the face right in the middle of it which certainly sent us to our knees.

Whilst I’m not going to make this post about what a tough year its been, it really has been the not so quiet elephant in the room for 2020 that’s hard to ignore. I don’t think a day goes by without the C word being mentioned! We have all had to face up to our own individual and collective challenges this year and endure hardships, fear, anxiety and immense sadness, whilst also experiencing some humbling take outs and special moments that are not easily forgotten. I for one know that whilst Lockdown was an extreme experience, it brought my family together in a way that I will forever hold dear. Plus I will never underestimate the value of having a well stocked bar ever again!

This project will always remain in my heart as the testament to what we can all endure when faced with our worst nightmare and the inner strength we find to carry on. This family became embedded in my life as we navigated this together and finished the project on what could only be described as the biggest high ever.

What should have been completed in 8 weeks took us 6 months, and whilst I like to think it was worth waiting for, the journey that got us here certainly was.

When the chips are down you look around to see who your crew are and for me that has been the humbling experience of 2020. We strive to create beautiful spaces, but its the incredible people that surround us who truly build them.