FROM CONCEPT TO COMPLETION

CLASSIC TO CONTEMPORARY Nextdore’s extensive range of tiles meant great choices for this abode. Most tiles from Nextdore have been personally selected from Europe. BRIGHT AND LIGHT The stunning windows and doors throughout the home were supplied by First Windows and Doors Christchurch.

The fluted theme also carries throughout the home’s interior: at the breakfast bar, the use of vertical ‘finger’ tiles (Ubicloud gloss mosaic) and the decorative one-of-a-kind headboard panelling used in the master bedroom.

“We really wanted to allow comfort to take centre stage in this home,” says Fiona. “We all need this right now, and the curved forms, soft fabrics and layering of textures is a great way to create a soothing, inviting look.”

Textured fabrics and wallpaper layering also provide depth and interest to this home, contrasting wonderfully with the neutral walls to make living and sleeping spaces feel cosy and inviting.

“I adore the way we’ve added a classic touch of luxury throughout this home while also elevating the comfort factor,” says Fiona. “For instance, in the bathroom we’ve used brushed brass tapware and fully tiled the bathroom with greys and golds. People often think these two colours don’t go together, but here we show that they do. Here we used Roden tiles on the floor and walls and Carpet Sand tiles around the bath – both sourced from Nextdore.”

Hallmark has worked with Fiona for over nine years on six different show homes and trusts her implicitly with each brief. “We love working with Fiona, as she understands our vision and our customers,” says Esther. “She really knows how to tell the story of a home through the art of interior design. We love her style and willingness to push the boundaries with her innovative ideas. We have a great working relationship where we can bounce ideas off one another to create something truly spectacular.”

This stylish home is the embodiment of high country living and is packed with different features, innovation and sophistication. This show home is certainly one to be seen and feast your eyes on.

GROUP HOME BUILDER Hallmark Homes (Canterbury) Limited 0508 442 556 hallmarkhomes.co.nz

INTERIOR DESIGN Sandalwood Design 027 555 3632 Sandalwooddesign.co.nz

WINDOWS AND DOORS First Windows and Doors Christchurch 03 375 0700 Firstchch.co.nz

TILES Nextdore Interiors 03 366 9400 nextdore.co.nz

ELECTRICIAN Harrison Smith Electrical 03 930 8176 harrisonsmith.co.nz

FASCIA/GUTTERING/ ROOF MEMBRANE Stratco 03 338 9063 stratco.co.nz

HYDRONIC UNDERFLOOR HEATING AND HOT WATER HEATING Warmth.nz 0800 477 778 warmth.nz

Healthy heat starts at your feet.

PAST PERFECTED

A UNIQUE HERITAGE PROPERTY IN JOHANNESBURG COMBINES THE HISTORIC CHARM OF THE OLD WITH A SMART, ELEGANT AND BOLDLY CONTEMPORARY TAKE ON FAMILY LIVING.

WORDS ROBYN ALEXANDER PHOTOGRAPHY ELSA YOUNG

Does each and every home have one set of owners who are perfectly and uniquely suited to it? It’s a romantic notion, perhaps, but sometimes it really does seem to be true. For example, this heritage house in one of Johannesburg’s northern suburbs and its owners – Jane Waters and Brandon de Beer – must surely have been destined for one another.

Jane explains that while the full history of their home’s origins isn’t known, it is clear from deeds records that the original building is about 170 years old, and it seems it was probably originally a hunting lodge on one of the large farms in the area. Such farms predated the existence of the city itself, of course – it’s quite difficult to imagine now, but the huge metropolis that is contemporary Johannesburg was founded a mere 135 years ago.

Having grown up in a 600-year-old cottage in the United Kingdom, Jane is “very much attracted” by all things historical, she says. She married Brandon, a South African who hails from the Lowveld, and six years ago, the couple was in search of a new house for themselves – and their three teenage daughters, Otilie, Edith and Freya – after a possible move elsewhere had not come to pass. While on a beach holiday, Jane received a call from a friend, who excitedly told her she had found Jane’s dream home. So, on her return to Johannesburg, they went to view it right away. “Before I had even opened the gate,” she says, “I knew.”

After falling instantly in love with the historic house, Jane discovered that the structure had been through a number of iterations in its long existence, and that the Waters would be the seventh family to live there. “There was a Mrs Badenhorst here at one time,” says Jane, “who grew chrysanthemums.” The extensive garden is a full acre in size, and its many mature trees, including magnolias and at least eight jacarandas, are testament to various previous occupants with a penchant for gardening.