FROM LEFT The sculpture in the driveway,
a crowd of figures, was made by DC’s late
uncle Pol Huyzers as a house-warming gift.
The figures represent the builders finally
leaving the site. Of course, at the same time,
it means they’ll never leave; Anika with Olive
on the stairway; the 14-seater outdoor-dining
table was custom-made for large family
gatherings and the chairs are Air Stacking
Chairs from SiT (sit-sa.co.za); Gerard and a
group of his friends leap from the upstairs
balcony into the pool.possible to detect the transition between the indoor areas, the
covered outdoor zones and the spaces open to the sky. ‘We’re
almost permanently outside,’ says Celeste. ‘The outdoor table was
custom-made for our family so it seats 14 people.’
The alterations in many ways emphasised aspects of the home’s
character rather than changing it. One tweak involved replacing
the old stacking patio doors with sliding doors that disappear into
the wall cavities, making the transition from indoor to outdoor
space even less noticeable. They also added a second storey to
one of the downstairs rooms to create a formal lounge above with
sweeping views of the quarry and direct access to the pool deck.
Most of the labour is hidden, however, as it went into lightening
the carbon footprint of the house – replacing windows with
double glazing and adding solar geysers and energy-efficient
heating and lighting systems. ‘I wanted to do my bit for greener
living,’ says the nature loving DC.
Updates within the home were carried out by interior architect
Sureen Gouws, Thomas’ wife and business partner. Sureen
selected furnishings to complement the home’s modernHOUSEANDLEISURE.CO.ZA HL OCTOBER 2015 551015_HL_000_House_Bezuidenhout_RFO.indd 4 2015/09/03 1:52 PM