Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2022 i South African Home Owner

Everyone knows the dangers of global warming, and experts continue to warn us to make changes to the way we live. Low energy resources and water shortages are a reality for all of us, and it’s common knowledge that we need to conserve these. COVID-19 has also taught us to do things differently – we travel less every day because we’re working from home, and we’re going out less.This reduces the impact of carbon emissions into the air. We have dedicated two features to this important topic, see pages 156 and 158. Still on the subject of healthy living, on page 118 Hasmita Amtha looks at eco-friendly interior paint that is not only safe, but comes in beautiful colours too. In kitchens, we reveal the latest cool cabinetry available, and…

The home is not only a space where we eat, sleep and work – it’s also an outward expression of our individuality, tastes and values. A new generation of designers is now challenging our preconceptions of how everyday décor items look and function in the home by creating cutting-edge one-of-a-kind pieces. We get to know two such artists. CHUMA MAWENI Ceramic designer Chuma Maweni first drew local attention for his series of teardrop-shaped vessels and conical pots. Pit-fired with the same techniques used by Nguni tribes, their dark, porous surfaces, striking silhouettes and smoky scent established him as a distinctly contemporary ceramicist dedicated to his craft. My upbringing took place in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape (I was born in 1976). I can trace my interest in ceramics all…

Are you dreaming of seeing your art or your designs coming to life in people’s homes? Does your art inspire people and do they constantly wish to see your favourite piece on a cushion or carpet? As part of our community of artists, The Cape Art Company can help you grow your product range with home décor products adorned with your original art in printed format. Independent artists from around South Africa use the company’s in-house manufacturing and printing services to sell their art on home décor, wall art and fabric products. The Cape Art Company has been working with artists, photographers and graphic designers since it started. The mission is to create a range of products that complement the artist’s art offering and that it can sell on its…

Treat yourself and your partner to a freshly brewed cup this Valentine’s Day. Opt for the Siemens Auto Espresso Coffee Machine with its OneTouch Double Cup feature from Hirsch’s Homestores. hirschs.co.za On-trend, this moody black kitchen from Fabri South Africa exudes refined elegance and European flair. fabri.pt Update your servingware with some contemporary pieces from the Country RoadTapas collection. www.woolworths.co.za Hydration is key to our vitality and KURO-BÕ Activated Charcoal comes in Binchotan Sticks and KÕins that can be added to any drinking water to easily purify it. kuro-bo.com Sleek and simple, the EVOX Serio Kitchen Mixer in black from Tile Africa is the perfect fit for a contemporary kitchen. www.tileafrica.co.za…

There’s something special about having bespoke furniture made to your liking, or simply customising a piece to complement your home. It’s all about personalising your space and making your home an extension of you and your style. Liani Douglas, founder and owner of architecture and product design studio Douglas & Company, has found that with people spending more time at home, there’s an increasing emphasis on the quality and longevity of items and spaces they interact with daily. “There is also a focus on the poetic in addition to the pragmatic. Home owners are seeking out pieces that they have an emotional connection with. At Douglas & Company, our design focus is to bring excitement back to daily experiences, show reverence for the everyday and find delight in the ordinary.”…

The flooring you select for your home can make a huge impact on its overall aesthetic. Searching for a modern, contemporary look? Seamless poured floors with no visible joins or ridges are a great option. Prefer a cosier, country-style feel? Wood-look tiles could be the right solution. Discover the many options available to suit every style and budget. THE SELECTION PROCESS Longevity and style are the two factors you’ll need to consider when selecting flooring for your home. Your floors will need to complement the look and feel of your home and hold up against ongoing wear and tear. According to Joanne Sykes, marketing director at Cemcrete, other important factors include your budget, whether you want different flooring or one continuous look throughout your home, and what your eco-friendly options…

Probably the easiest way to inject a festive feeling before the holidays is to change your scatter cushions, add some new throws or a rug, or change the wallpaper. “Introducing some neutral colours into your home like white or perhaps some colourful cushions into your home if you have a plain room could be just the change for a fun festive feel,” says Frans Alexander, managing director of Frans Alexander Interiors. ENTERTAINING “An entertainment area can be as elaborate as a full home bar, with counter, bar stools and backlit shelving, or as simple as a trendy drinks trolley stocked with some drinks, glasses and ice for guests to help themselves,” says Jessica Boyer from Jessica Boyer Interiors. Also consider some snack bowls, napkins, glassware and a fridge to chill…

Grey water comes from baths, sinks, washing machines and other kitchen appliances. The grey water cleaning process is expensive and therefore many opt to use this water only in the garden. It is important that the water be used as much as possible, as it starts smelling bad if it stands in the tank too long. – Clearwater Pumps The average household can reuse around 1 500 litres of grey water each week. The average grey-water system installed at a single family home can save about 2 600 gallons of water per year and has a lifespan of 10+ years. Grey water may look dirty, but it is actually a great fertiliser for plants. Always be mindful of how your grey water is used. It can contain bacteria and germs.…

Jana Leonard spent over 12 years in public relations, with many of her clients being from the décor, homeware and fashion industries. It took a lockdown and her little boy’s love of playing with everything he could reach to spark an idea that would launch her décor lifestyle brand,The Baskiti Co. Baskiti focuses on modern design that’s functional and beautiful. What does The Baskiti Co. offer? The Baskiti Hanging Storage Basket was developed when my son, in his “ball phase” during lockdown, took all our veggies from the trolley and threw them around the kitchen and living room, which was also my work-from-home office space. I knew there had to be a solution. I wanted to take what was in toddler reach and move it to an unused wall space.…

Juliet Eidelman is an architect turned ceramicist who creates bespoke ceramic pieces. She handmakes each piece and works with forms, textures and unglazed clay. She’s always experimenting, and works with clients and designers to develop unique pieces for their spaces. As a creative I love the design process, from the conceptual stage to the production stage. As an architect turned ceramicist, I enjoy having the opportunity to work with clients and designers to create unique pieces for different spaces. I keep my creativity stimulated by working on a variety of projects. I like to be challenged to develop new pieces, and I often work on a large scale and enjoy figuring out how to make them. Juliet Eidelman Ceramics is my passion. What began as my creative outlet has turned…

The ocean view is undoubtedly the hero of this magnificent beachfront home. Contemporary in design, with bold statement textures, colours and features throughout, this seaside home offers ample opportunity to unwind and take in the view.The owner wanted a coastal holiday escape for his family and a base where he could relax when in town for business. “With such a stunning view of the sea, it was important to be able to see the outside from almost every vantage point in the home,” says the owner. A freestanding bathtub in the main upstairs bathroom affords an uninterrupted ocean vista. Window walls and spacious open-plan rooms ensure that natural light streams in throughout the home.The floating staircase is also made of glass, ensuring that natural light remains the focal feature in…

When curating a bathroom that’s not only beautiful and functional, but also provides a much-needed retreat from the new work-from-home environment, even small changes to your shower can elevate this space to spa-like levels. As people spend more time at home, bathrooms have transformed into personal spa experiences. Glass shower doors with minimal framing, spacious showers with integrated seating and decorative tiles combine to create unique and restorative spaces. PERSONAL STYLE To ensure that home owners enjoy a bathroom that reflects their individual style and meets their changing needs, GROHE has developed curated bathroom concepts. Called Perfect Match, this offers product combinations that bring together form and function. Harmony is created with the careful selection of taps that match the shape of the ceramics, and shower systems that blend with…

CREATING DIVISIONS Screens and room dividers allow home owners to make the best possible use of a home’s spaces. With compact living, more open areas and fewer walls, screens can create separate spaces in modern and clever ways, “giving you more value per square metre for your home”, says Jackie Uitenweerde, chief executive and designer at Design 11. Leanne Van Niekerk of LVN Interiors says: “Room divider screens not only break up a room into portions with a decorative touch, but also provide an elegant and attractive way to add privacy to a room.” “I think generally decorative architectural screens are becoming a big trend throughout South Africa. You see a lot of this in Europe and the growing popularity is driven by the scope that this product can offer,”…

“Decorative cement-based finishes are the perfect example of the synergy between beauty, sustainability and economy, giving you a durable, low-maintenance floor that will last the life of your home.” – Joanne Sykes, Cemcrete “As we become aware of our direct impact on our environment, it is our duty as custodians of the earth to design and manufacture sustainable flooring systems that are eco-friendly and nature-inspired. The quartz stone used in Quartz Carpet is millions of years old and is sourced from alluvial rivers in central Europe. The resins used are also 100% solvent- and VOC-free, resulting in a natural stone floor.” – Jeremy Stewart, Seamless Flooring Systems “Eco-friendly flooring is available right across the flooring spectrum. Carpets from recycled plastic bottles are available in numerous qualities, styles and colours. Laminates…

“I select essentials with a cinnamon, sweet or fresh fragrance to enhance the holiday experience through the sense of smell. Candles and flowers in the room will make your guest feel very special. Add an extra blanket or two for those cool evenings. Do a turn-down for your guest and leave a carafe of water on the bedside and a snack. Display the remotes on the bedside table to ensure a comfortable stay. Every bedside should have an adapter for a phone charger.”…

W ho I am is an interior designer, and someone who observes human behaviour to elicit a response to improve productivity or an experience of a lifestyle or brand. I’m a lover of bubbles, yoga, swimming and long walks. I’m the greatest fan of my son Noah, partner Jan-Hendrik and my lovely stepdaughter Jenna. The style of the home I live in is contemporary coastal. It feels like a holiday house. It’s modern, but also warm and nostalgic – every item in my home tells a story. It contains pieces of my past as well as my present. And the thing I like about that style is it’s relaxed and inviting. People love visiting us. Our house has a special energy.The moment we walked through that front gate, we looked…

Established in 1817, Duravit AG provides the complete bathroom solution, focusing on excellence, design, responsibility and wellbeing. Duravit designs products to suit every market, from hospitals to hotels and even your next home. At Duravit we create an environment that transforms a regular bathroom into an everyday luxury experience. What sets our work apart from the rest is our consideration of the impact on the environment, and ensuring that whatever we manufacture uses natural resources responsibly. And these efforts have certainly been recognised: Duravit AG has been certified for its commitment to the environment in accordance with ISO 14001, ISO 50001 and PEFC. Even though we are living in an era of technology and automation, when it comes to products with a high claim to design and function, quality still…

This family found their dream escape in one of KwaZulu-Natal’s most popular holiday spots. Boasting a warm, tropical climate for most of the year, this perfect place can be enjoyed any time of the year. The property chosen needed a bit of TLC as the interior was quite dull. “The house was filled with very dark furniture and dark balustrades. We started by converting the staircase, featuring glass balustrades with marble stairs – a very light, clean look,” says Marianne Adams from Frans Alexander Interiors. The property is made up of a double garage, four bedrooms, a cinema room, lounge, TV room, dining room, open-plan kitchen, swimming pool with entertainment area and a sizeable koi pond. Frans Alexander Interiors did a sterling job of filling these spaces, making the interior…

There’s certainly nothing like a freshly painted interior – whether it’s a bold pop on a feature wall or a muted tone as the main colour. Until recently, paint was largely toxic and far from eco-friendly. That’s now changing with paint manufacturers and retailers bringing out solutions that are not only environmentally safe, but are available in beautiful colours too. We speak to local paint experts to share what’s on offer: ON THE MARKET According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, volatile organic compound (VOC) paint contains harmful chemicals and carbon-containing substances that vaporise at room temperature and enter into the air. These gases have adverse health effects, triggering severe allergies and discomfort, and are bad for the environment. To counteract this, low- to zero-VOC paints are fast becoming…

Here are some tips from our experts on how to incorporate screens into your home: • “Think of a modern interpretation of Mashrabiya – privacy and shading, ventilation, and sun control. Beautiful shadows and projection of light through the perforations [serve] as added decorative aspects to a highly functional architectural product.” – Kelly Cooke, Tilt Screens • “Our interior/exterior sliding screens are an easy way to move screens to use rooms to their full potential. They can slide open to create open spaces or to transform an additional space like an office.” – Jackie Uitenweerde, Design 11 • “Decorative screens are also being used as security. Lockable sliding screens can be used at your front door or in other parts of your home.” – Leanne Van Niekerk, LVN Interiors…

“A subtle yet impactful welcome to a stateman’s residence.” Why did you choose interior design? The space we inhabit has always fascinated me. As a child I used to constantly rearrange our family home and come up with ideas to repurpose things I found. When it came to choosing my career path, it simply was a no brainer, and that passion has just grown from there. Why did you take on this particular project? How could I say no! It was an opportunity to work on a project that was the personal home of one of the most influential and iconic people globally and the father of our nation. It was an honour to be part of the team that came together to build and design this space in such…