Restored to its former glory

“The previous owner had started to excavate the inside of the house in order to build a water storage tank. The mind boggles…,” says Elche with a chuckle. Right outside the lounge, where the veranda is today, there was a second hole – another part of the ‘big water storage plan’.

“The front stoep was also not intact as the previous owner had dug a furrow the width of the front door to lead leiwater underneath it and into his planned water tank in the lounge. This caused the bottom half of the door to rot,” explains Elche.

Restoring the home to its former glory was a labour of love that took all of 12 years, much of it done long distance from Mpumalanga.

“Renovating such a derelict property is very expensive; we wanted it done properly and didn’t skimp on anything. We did a huge amount of the work ourselves, down to sanding the poplar ceiling beams and flooring that we sourced in Bedford about 200kms away – and we loved it! We were very ably assisted by Conrad Kaspersky and his team of builders from construction company The Polish Way.

“Every time shuttering was removed from the gaping holes where windows and doors were missing, and one of our second-hand finds was fitted, we took a moment to appreciate how this house was turning into a beauty.”

By 2015, a section of the Robinsons’ home was habitable and the couple moved to Nieu-Bethesda permanently. In May 2017, more than a decade after they bought their home, the last bedroom and bathroom were finished, and Paradijs was worthy of its name once again.

“Having lived in the bush and being used to the quiet, our new lifestyle suited us very well. It was, and still is, so rewarding to see this house transform slowly into what it is today,” Elche says proudly.

Nordica stove from Fireplace Warehouse The Nordica, a clean wood-burning stove, burns throughout winter. The kitchen floor was finished with Paintsmiths Pigmented Floorcote in the colour Mr Grey.

The laboratory sink in the kitchen was a second-hand find. The wall and counter around it were finished with Paintsmiths Pigmented Floorcote in the colour Mr Grey.

Elche’s daughter Simone picked up a second-hand kitchen cupboard in GraaffReinet; it’s now used as an island unit. Pendant lamps from Weylandts