A French-style house in the heart of Pretoria
Inspired by a French country-cottage style, the Van der Merwes have created an idyllic setting for family life.
Looking back, Chris and Liz van der Merwe still have a good giggle when they think about how a chance encounter with a front door inspired them to design and build their own French-style home in the heart of Pretoria.
Their journey began in 2006 when the couple were staying at their family holiday home in Hermanus. On a walk along the beachfront, they passed a home with a striking wooden front door that stopped them in their tracks. Intrigued by its rich, textured patina and impressive size, the couple walked by deliberately a few more times and finally decided to knock…
Thankfully, the homeowner was friendly and told them she had bought the double doors from Private Collections, a Cape Town company specialising in reclaimed wooden doors and window frames with a European influence.
The couple had seen similar doors in their other favourite holiday destination, the south of France. Over the next five years, whenever they went to Hermanus, they returned with one of five doors and windows they saved for while planning the design of their dream home in Gauteng. It was completed in 2011.
“We’d go out for dinner (this was before the girls were born!) and chat for ages about what we wanted for our home; there were lots of drawings on napkins!” says Liz, who owns Zau Spa.
The architecture and interior design were largely inspired by the French countryside. “We love the rustic warmth and cosiness of a typical French farmhouse,” says Liz. “We wanted our home to embody exactly that and we set about creating a luxurious but unpretentious place where you can kick off your shoes, open a bottle of wine and enjoy the aroma of something delicious cooking in the kitchen.
“Our guests often say that being here feels like being on holiday in France – which is exactly what we wanted!” >>
A French affair
Throughout the house, Liz used gentle muted hues typical of the French countryside, including soft grey, white, pale yellow and baby blue – all punctuated by accents of vibrant colour.
She has plenty of sound advice when it comes to creating a French décor style, starting with wrought-iron furniture pieces. “These make great statement pieces,” she explains. “Use them outside as well as indoors for fittings like chandeliers and furniture such as beds.”
As Liz works largely with a muted palette, she likes to introduce colour with fabric. “Linen is my favourite,” she says. “Always think about texture when decorating a room and repeat combinations throughout your home to visually ‘connect’ spaces. For example, use floral scatters on sofas upholstered in different floral fabric or pair a colourful throw and a muted throw on all the beds.
“We wanted our space to express a combination of calm and vibrant energies.” Hence the colourful wallpaper in the lounge, bedroom and guest loo that works so well in combination with the more neutral tones in the various spaces.
“We also got plenty of ideas on our travels in Europe,” Liz adds. “For example, a bright yellow headboard in our bedroom was inspired by a hotel room in Sicily that had the most stunning yellow floor tiles – I was mesmerised by them and wanted something in my own home that would remind me of that happy feature.” >>
Liz shares her shopping secrets...
“When decorating a home in a specific style, it’s important to identify shops you can rely on for items that suit your preferences,” says Liz. Here are some of her favourites in and around Pretoria:
• I love old furniture that still shows the layers of paint it has received over the years. A lot of the pieces at Rust in White are affordable as they’ve been salvaged and they have the loveliest linens, perfect for layering.
• Weylandts is great for more modern finds (many still with a rugged finish) to contrast with older, less luxurious pieces.
• At Pieter Oosthuizen Interiors & Antiques you’ll find plenty of French antiques and quirky items.
• I love Garden Bleu’s wrought-iron furniture and custom-made pieces. I sent them a picture of an outdoor wrought-iron sofa frame and they made me an exact replica!
• Sprig is the place to go for stunning floral arrangements. >>
A glorious garden
The Van der Merwes enlisted the help of architect AJ Smit of Palin Smit Architects to design their house. “We wanted arches, plenty of tall windows and doors, natural stone, raw brick, wooden textures and creeperfilled courtyards,” says Liz. AJ was up to the task and brought their dream to life.
“It was important that the outdoors was easily accessible or at least visible from every room in our home. We love entertaining and being outside,” says Liz. “For nine months after our home was complete, the surrounding space was all rubble and sand. One of the best days of my life (apart from my wedding day and the days on which my daughters were born) was when the landscaper arrived with some of the 500 trees we would plant on the plot!
“We wanted to create a shaded, forest feel with the trees planted quite close to each other and plenty of creepers and plants all around the house. We’re surrounded by neighbouring homes, but we can’t see them.”
Chris, who has a “slight obsession” with trees (he developed NutriBag, a specialised nutritional pack for trees, shrubs and grasses), helped Iwan Roux of Rekopane Landscapes to create their lovely outdoor space that features mostly river bushwillow as well as olive, peach, apple and pomegranate trees.