THE BEST OF SEASIDE LIVING
WORDS CRISTINA GOVENDER | PHOTOS STEPHEN ROWLEY PHOTOGRAPHY
Located in Zululami Luxury Coastal Estate, this stunning home rests on a hill overlooking the ocean. Clad in glass, every design element and material has been carefully considered to make the best of the surroundings, greenery and sea.
The house was designed using a modern contemporary approach, incorporating elements of seaside architecture and adding an eco-friendly twist. Gerhard Breedt of Gerhard Architect and Django Ellinas of Evolution Construction collaborated to bring this dream house to life. Gerhard has been conceptualising and creating beautiful homes for over two decades.
Django, who is the proud owner of this house, is a veteran in the construction industry and is currently developing properties in local upcoming estates. They both focus on a niche market to offer their clients quality and personalised service.
This is a two-storey house with six bedrooms, all equipped with their own bathrooms, two double garages, a pool, a jacuzzi, a boma and an outdoor bar, among other features. Every site has something special about it and, from conception, Django had a clear vision to maximise the access to the ocean this property afforded them. While trying to do this, they also had to be considerate of the houses behind them who would also try to access the same views they were trying to make the most of. So, they designed the garage and the solid walls to face the rest of the estate, using angles to create privacy. This resulted in a whole wing of the house facing the ocean. Here, they used glass wisely, knowing where it would make the most difference and opening up the views of the ocean and green belt.
Looking closer at the layout, Gerhard designed a courtyard housing a tropical jungle-like section of greenery in the middle of the house. This courtyard is used as a separation element, splitting off the more private wings from the social areas. It also creates a central entrance from which everything disperses – doors open into this atrium from all sides. This also means that the lounge and entertainment areas look out onto this unique space, so that whichever way you look, you are never facing walls, only greenery or the ocean!
This courtyard also serves to create ventilation. By being connected to most parts of the home, opening up those doors creates a cross-flow of air throughout the house, having a cooling effect. Of course, this ventilation will help in the hotter summer months, also aiding in lowering energy consumption. Gerhard and Django have used multiple design and material factors to ensure this home is as eco-friendly as possible.
The house is fitted with full solar energy and gas connections so that they are self-sustaining and have an uninterrupted energy supply. The slabs used are thicker, which also helps conserve energy as it offers better insulation, cooling and heating the interior faster. As glass allows sunlight to pass through and traps the heat in a room, making it hot, they used energy-efficient glass throughout to prevent this.
There is a seamless effect thanks to the frameless glass used for the exterior and interior balustrades. This seamless thread extends to the entertainment area with the pool – the views out to the ocean and overflow rim create a water-on-water effect of tranquillity.
For Django, he intended this home to be a space where he could enjoy retired life and wake up every day to the ocean. He designed and decorated the interior, creating a symbiosis between the style of the exterior and the interior. It was designed with a modern and minimalistic aesthetic in mind with plain white walls, but pops of colour here and there, all while being careful not to clash with the greens of the courtyard. The red Calore pellet fireplace, Mark Oliver sculptures and scattered artwork bring warmth and character to break up the white interior. The transition from the white oak floating staircase to the wooden Oggie flooring on the second floor flows nicely and softens the stark white walls.
Having this second floor is one of Django’s highlights, as well as the panoramic views of the ocean throughout the majority of the house. For Gerhard, his favourite element would be the welcoming atmosphere of the home, with the off-shutter, floating slabs, high-level windows of the garages, and double-volume entrance with glass reaching up to the ceiling.
Taking time and paying attention to detail, this house is absolutely stunning and truly a gem of Zululami. This is the fruit of hard work, inspiration and collaboration.