A Cut Above The Rest

Once damp, dark and filled with storage boxes, this attic is now a picture-perfect loft apartment.

- Kim Arendse

When Sandra and Andries Botha moved from the bustling Cape Town city centre to the suburbs in 2006, they fell in love with a Cape Dutch house in Rosebank. Built in 1785, it reminded them of the home they once owned on a Free State farm; it had all the old-world charm and strong bones they were looking for – except when it came to the attic.

Usually a drawcard when purchasing property, the attic in this old home was in a terrible state. It was dark and damp, the floors were warped from a burst geyser some years before and the wooden beams and thatched roof were beginning to sag.

Although they’d planned on using it for storage only, the couple still wanted an airy, safe space above their home. The Bothas had the floor repaired and the entire framework of the roof and thatch replaced but retained the original exposed roof beams. They also added a few sash windows to make the most of natural light.

As intended, they used the space for storage until 2016 when their daughter Nadia moved back to South Africa after living and working abroad for 10 years. She was looking for a place to stay, so they decided to convert the attic into an apartment for her.

Andries, a keen upcycler, relished the project. Over the years he had salvaged everything from a cherrybark oak tree that was blown over in a storm in Cape Town to pressed-tin panels from a fire-ravaged building in Bloemfontein. And having farmed for years, he is used to getting his hands dirty. “As a farmer, you learn to rely on yourself – and a lack of budget!” he says.