Project: Heritage Restoration and Expansion – South African Arts & Crafts Home
Location Context:
This unregistered heritage building is a modest, low-rise structure combining Cape vernacular elements—such as whitewashed plastered walls and moulded detailing—with Spanish-Californian influences, visible in the exposed timber roof structure, pergola designs, and traditional clay roof tiles. The result is an architectural idiosyncrasy: a hybrid style reminiscent of the South African Arts & Crafts movement.
Historical records indicate that the only available plan is a 1950 alteration application, attributed to architects H.A.P. Kent, in association with Brian Mansergh and B. St. C. Lightfoot. The original drawings likely date to the 1930s. The property lies within a historically significant suburb, established in 1902, where water furrows line the streets and properties maintain historic ‘leiwater’ rights.
Set back from the street behind an established garden, mature trees, and a vine-covered pergola, the building remains discreet and shielded from view until one passes through a narrow whitewashed entrance.
Client Brief:
After purchasing the property in 2021, the client expressed a desire to sensitively restore and extend the home, preserving its historic character while adding modern functionality. The scope of proposed work included:
• New garage
• Store, scullery, and pantry
• New guest bedroom with en-suite and separate entrance
• En-suite additions to bedrooms 1 and 2
• New braai/living room with views of the Stellenbosch mountains
• Covered glass entrance
• Privacy courts and pergolas
• New swimming pool and driveway
• Internal spatial reconfigurations
Design Approach:
The strategy centred on respectful integration. All new interventions were placed along the sides and rear of the building, preserving the original street-facing garden and scale. The extensions follow the original forms, angles, and heights, but are clearly differentiated through contemporary detailing and material selection. Our goal was to retain the building’s unique identity without allowing the new additions to dominate—except where they re-established a long-lost connection to the dramatic mountain views.
Design Methodology:
Original thin oak floorboards were carefully restored, and matching oak planks installed in new living spaces. Economical cork flooring was chosen for the bedrooms to blend with the timber character. Original pine ceilings were insulated and finished in a light-painted treatment to visually lift the spaces. Steel windows and doors were replaced with durable aluminium frames. The existing clay roof tiles, which could not be sourced anew, were supplemented with attic stock found on site to resolve waterproofing challenges.
The result is a cohesive and respectful transformation—one that safeguards the historic identity of the home while introducing comfort, longevity, and spatial clarity suited to modern living.