Jacuzzi Dip, Surf Session, Veranda Nap—This Beach House Offers Every Kind of Chill
“Buy for lifestyle” is the homeowners’ house-hunting motto.
Published Oct 23, 2023 1:35 AM
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When the owners of this Cape Town, South Africa, house had two interior designers, a sculptor, a fashion designer, and a magazine editor over for lunch one day, they decided to seize the moment. They took the group around to the back of the house, pointed to the handful of green paint swatches on the wall, and asked them which one they liked the most. They all pointed to a different green.
Ultimately, it was Debra Parkington who made the final call. The homeowners, who had been going to the weekend retreat for a few years at that point, tasked Parkington with tweaking some of their furniture and reconfiguring the already well-designed space to better suit their family’s needs. Parkington landed on a light moss shade that is partly inspired by the original stained concrete floors that run throughout the four-bedroom, two-bathroom home. With this decision, Parkington truly made the wood house one with its surroundings. The wraparound veranda offers views of the wetlands, milkwood forests, hiking trails, and the family’s blossoming garden. It’s the quintessential beach house where long lunches and even longer afternoon naps are a regular occurrence.
“We all eat together and move between the outside table and indoors,” says one of the homeowners. “Kids come back from a surf and move between the hot tub, the swimming pool, and playing soccer on the lawn. It’s all very relaxed.” In fact, it’s been that level of relaxed from the very beginning. When the family bought the property five years ago, they inherited it—and almost all of the furniture inside—from interior designer Boyd Ferguson and his sister, Geordi de Sousa Costa. “Buy for lifestyle,” is the current owners’ house-hunting motto.
When Parkington came into the picture, her first task at hand was leaning even harder into comfort. She made mostly small tweaks, like customizing new slipcovers for the sofas and refilling their cushions so they’re extra-plush. To accommodate lazy weekends, Parkington added daybeds in the TV room that can double as slumber party overflow (six can sleep happily in this space) and put extra-large outdoor loungers on the veranda that are perfect for alfresco naps or for when the homeowners wants to listen to podcasts in peace. “We wanted to create a space where you could take yourself off for an afternoon snooze or curl up with a good book,” say the owners.
Sisal carpet spans the bedrooms on the top level. The floor treatment is warm underfoot, but to fully accommodate for the chilly temperatures in the wintertime, the owners splurged on two Charnwood fireplaces in a metallic bronze finish. They can also keep warm by heading out to the circular stone jacuzzi in the front yard or the firepit located just off the kitchen.
The bunk room upstairs is for the owners’ youngest son and his friends, and was designed to re-create the feeling of camping. However, the bedroom offers more storage than a tent, thanks to a cubby underneath the window that can be cleverly hidden with a curtain. “The intention in this house is to not take anything too seriously,” say the owners. Mission accomplished.
