The Secret World of Cape Town Design

While Cape Town is famous for Table Mountain, white-sand beaches, breathtaking views, and top-notch vineyards, what only the insiders know about, is the secret that is its stunning homes. Where the villas’ beauty is in the details; whether it’s through how curvilinear forms frame unstoppable views, or how sand was transported specifically from a certain part of South Africa to get the perfect colour of concrete.

Oozing with natural beauty and pure magic, you can’t help but fall in love with South Africa’s oldest, most charming city through these homes that embody its design spirit.

in harmony with nature

Villa Otto is an all-white minimalistic home that steps back to let the beautiful landscapes of Cape Town do all the talking. You’ll either see the iconic peak of Lion’s Head peeking out from almost every window in this modern home, or the sparkling blue waters of the ocean. It’s quite like a spiritual experience, to be surrounded by nothing but white as it allows you to fully focus and immerse yourself in the views that lay before you. Our favourite activity is to find the spot of the day that’s the ‘most beautiful’, as it can change depending on our mood or nature’s mood! It could be in the shaded living area, perhaps from the tranquil floating bathtub, or maybe even just the terrace of the bedroom. So sit back and let your surroundings take centre stage at this beautiful South African home.

in the shadow of the mountain

Villa Mint is the family-home of our dreams. While grand in itself, spanning over 4 floors and over 1000 square metres of land, it can’t compete with the grandeur of Table Mountain. You’ll be pressed to find a better backdrop for your family holiday. Spend days by the pool reading a book or taking a nap, and look up to see it in your eyeline. Have your morning coffee, and watch as the sun peeks through its peaks. Better yet, watch as the sun sets with your loved ones and the reflection of its rays bouncing off its face, making for a rainbow of colours that change on the daily. We can guarantee that every sunset is different in Cape Town, and each one will leave you in awe of the beauty of nature.

bird's eye view

Villa Hawk was designed by Peerutin Karol, who is behind iconic buildings including V&A Waterfront’s Victoria Wharf, Wembley Square, and more. Peerutin’s masterful architecture draws inspiration from American modernists, including John Lautner, whose designs such as Elrod House (Palm Springs, 1968) and the Sheats Goldstein Residence (LA, 1963) seem to have been absorbed after featuring in movies like James Bond’s Diamonds Are Forever.

Villa Hawk’s decor matches the home’s style in minimalism and quality. The purity of its design carries through to the interiors, which was done in association with Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens. Villa Hawk exudes serenity: from the dramatic scale of the off-shutter concrete to the undulating railing pool that seems to merge with the sky and overflow into the ocean below, creating a feeling of boundless space. Built over four levels, the home is clad in sandstone as an architectural expression of its location. Made of two sweeping ‘flying saucers’ linked by a bridge, the upper two floors floating over this base are all swooping lines, sinuous curves, open spaces and tilted glazing.

local flare

Villa Above was designed by leading South African Architectural firm SAOTA that pairs both an innovative and dedicated approach to design, and has a global footprint with projects on six continents. It was  inspired by the owner's love and interest in architecture, art, and contemporary design. The design ethos was focused on welcoming the grandeur of nature into equally grand homes. This is why in Villa Above, it almost feels like you possess a whole piece of the sky, and your own personal stretch of the ocean, through the clever use of space and framing.

The dedication to detail is found in the fact that sand from the west coast of South Africa was specially transported in and added into the concrete mixture to get the iconic white colour for the concrete ceilings. Monumental wall hanging tapestries, and large-scale wall sculptures, cleverly fill the high volumes of the home. Keeping in the theme, the owner's art collection is mostly focused on South African artists, but also has a few artists from the African continent, for example, Cyril Kabiro’s art from Kenya. An iconic piece such as the Porky Hefer ‘nest' installed in the double volume of the family room, is functional art but still equally impressive in scale and beauty.

rocky roots

Kearnon renovated Villa Icaria alongside his friend and interior designer Tara Bean, with the assistance of architect Antonio Zaninovic. So much so that when he finally renovated two years ago, they became central to the home’s redesign, which included a re-configuration of the spaces and large windows to make them a feature. 

Kearnon, the owner of Villa Icaria tells us what appealed to him at first glance.

“The gigantic boulders on the site were a huge part of the initial attraction for me”

Kearnon and Tara shared the same African sensibility, as both are South-African born but have lived in New York. Tara custom-designed a lot of the furniture and mixed pieces that give it that mis-matched yet still well put-together that is undeniably ‘New York’. A perfect example is the dining area. The yellowwood dining table is from Allan Lutge Antiques, and the dining chairs are EE Meyer’s South-African mid-century collection that Tara had blackened. These pieces are accented by the imitation Philippe Starck Costes chairs at the ends of the table, whose legs are powder-coated black, giving it a modern touch.

With Le Collectionist, discover one of our luxury holiday destinations and let yourself be carried away by the magic of Cape Town. Keep exploring our homes and contact your Tailor and organise your luxury holiday.