Hey there, my fellow peeps of SG land 
Had a fab long weekend!! Let's just say that the liver, the nose AND the wallet have been looking rather worse for wear these past 3 days
But things seem to finally be back on track, & inbetween all the phonecalls & emails & running around & deadlines - & all those other horrid everyday things that one has to do to stay afloat in the rat race - I thought I'd fill you in on the progress of our new house...
As you can see, things are really starting to take shape...
[Note: To give you a sense of scale, the stand is 1,100 square metres, 200 of that being under roof].
Above: A view of the back of the house from the driveway entrance. On your left is what I refer to as the "food wing" which comprises a double garage at the rear leading directly into the laundry / scullery, followed by the open-plan kitchen & dining-room, & then out onto the patio with a built-in braai (BBQ) in front. On your right is the "rest wing" which comprises two double bedrooms at the rear - both with en-suite bathrooms - & a large lounge opening onto the patio with a breathtaking view of the city skyline in front. These two wings will be joined by an entrance hall in the middle, with a huge "picture window" overlooking a central rim-flow pool, & a framed view of the city skyline. All rooms will have double-volume ceilings, except the interconnecting entrance hall, which will have a low ceiling to create a cosy, welcoming feeling before "releasing" you into the rest of the bright, airy space. The foundations we have installed allow for going double-storey down the line - as & when funds allow...
Above: A more bird's eye view of the house from the back left-hand corner of the property. To your left - on the other side of the stone dividing wall - is our only neighbour, who currently has their home on the market for a whopping R3.9m!! (This obviously bodes well for the future value of our own property). On the other 3 sides we border a fairly quiet road (Musilis Drive, Northcliff). As you can see, we will easily have safe parking inside our boundaries for a good half-dozen cars, if not more!! When we bought the sub-divided piece of land (an old tennis court, as some of you already know!), our neighbours told us that security in the area was relatively good, although cars do tend to get pinched if left parked in the street. So providing our guests with safe off-street parking was top of mind when designing this house.
Above: View of the two wings from the front of house (lounge on your left, dining-room on your right, which will be separated by the pool in the middle).
Above: View from the lounge. Both the lounge & dining-room will have fold-away wooden doors to bring the outdoors in / indoors out, & of course maximise the awesome views.
Above: View from the position of the central pool. There will be a "martini seat" (architectural term for a built-in underwater seat) at the end of the pool, for us to park off on whilst having sundowners & enjoying the beautiful Highveld sunsets during Africa's long, hot summer months
Above: View of the front of the house from the front garden, beneath where the pool will be.
Above: Looking up at the side of the house from the garden on the road side of the property.
We are going to have to do some serious landscaping to get the garden looking nice & pretty once the builders have left. Luckily, we are surrounded by some amazing inspiration, like these display gardens we visited recently at Lifestyle Garden Centre in Randpark Ridge...
I am a HUGE fan of trees, & although the property already boasts several lovely established ones, I also plan on planting a couple of yellow fever trees (see below). They are my absolute favourite - almost ghostly in their colouring - & remind me of happy family holidays in the bush
(Yes, that is Lee's Honda in the pic above, hehe. The same one that I posed near-naked on & left a dent in the bonnet of for that kinky carwash Marie Claire shoot I did recently, whoops!)
Well, folks, I guess that's it from me for now. Hope you all have a stellar weekend lined up!! Be good, & don't do anything I wouldn't do
Had a fab long weekend!! Let's just say that the liver, the nose AND the wallet have been looking rather worse for wear these past 3 days
But things seem to finally be back on track, & inbetween all the phonecalls & emails & running around & deadlines - & all those other horrid everyday things that one has to do to stay afloat in the rat race - I thought I'd fill you in on the progress of our new house...As you can see, things are really starting to take shape...
[Note: To give you a sense of scale, the stand is 1,100 square metres, 200 of that being under roof].
Above: A view of the back of the house from the driveway entrance. On your left is what I refer to as the "food wing" which comprises a double garage at the rear leading directly into the laundry / scullery, followed by the open-plan kitchen & dining-room, & then out onto the patio with a built-in braai (BBQ) in front. On your right is the "rest wing" which comprises two double bedrooms at the rear - both with en-suite bathrooms - & a large lounge opening onto the patio with a breathtaking view of the city skyline in front. These two wings will be joined by an entrance hall in the middle, with a huge "picture window" overlooking a central rim-flow pool, & a framed view of the city skyline. All rooms will have double-volume ceilings, except the interconnecting entrance hall, which will have a low ceiling to create a cosy, welcoming feeling before "releasing" you into the rest of the bright, airy space. The foundations we have installed allow for going double-storey down the line - as & when funds allow...
Above: A more bird's eye view of the house from the back left-hand corner of the property. To your left - on the other side of the stone dividing wall - is our only neighbour, who currently has their home on the market for a whopping R3.9m!! (This obviously bodes well for the future value of our own property). On the other 3 sides we border a fairly quiet road (Musilis Drive, Northcliff). As you can see, we will easily have safe parking inside our boundaries for a good half-dozen cars, if not more!! When we bought the sub-divided piece of land (an old tennis court, as some of you already know!), our neighbours told us that security in the area was relatively good, although cars do tend to get pinched if left parked in the street. So providing our guests with safe off-street parking was top of mind when designing this house.
Above: View of the two wings from the front of house (lounge on your left, dining-room on your right, which will be separated by the pool in the middle).
Above: View from the lounge. Both the lounge & dining-room will have fold-away wooden doors to bring the outdoors in / indoors out, & of course maximise the awesome views.
Above: View from the position of the central pool. There will be a "martini seat" (architectural term for a built-in underwater seat) at the end of the pool, for us to park off on whilst having sundowners & enjoying the beautiful Highveld sunsets during Africa's long, hot summer months
Above: View of the front of the house from the front garden, beneath where the pool will be.
Above: Looking up at the side of the house from the garden on the road side of the property.
We are going to have to do some serious landscaping to get the garden looking nice & pretty once the builders have left. Luckily, we are surrounded by some amazing inspiration, like these display gardens we visited recently at Lifestyle Garden Centre in Randpark Ridge...
I am a HUGE fan of trees, & although the property already boasts several lovely established ones, I also plan on planting a couple of yellow fever trees (see below). They are my absolute favourite - almost ghostly in their colouring - & remind me of happy family holidays in the bush
(Yes, that is Lee's Honda in the pic above, hehe. The same one that I posed near-naked on & left a dent in the bonnet of for that kinky carwash Marie Claire shoot I did recently, whoops!)
Well, folks, I guess that's it from me for now. Hope you all have a stellar weekend lined up!! Be good, & don't do anything I wouldn't do
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have a super weekend!