Conservatory Party

By building on a conservatory, interior designer Andrea Lindsay-Bowman turned a compact townhouse into a wonderful setting for a new lifestyle

- Diana Wemyss

After years of living in large houses in Hout Bay and Llandudno, interior designer Andrea Lindsay-Bowman decided that, with her two children, Tim and Zara, now at university and living in digs, it was time to downsize and look for an easy-to-maintain lock up and go.

What she found was a well-built duplex in Stonehurst Estate in Cape Town. But there were a few drawbacks; the garden had suffered dreadfully during the drought and the living areas were rather cramped. But fortunately, she had a solution in mind and before she signed on the dotted line, made sure that the body corporate would allow her to add on a glass structure.

Before moving in, Andrea and Steve demolished the existing built-in braai separating the patio from the backyard and cast a single slab over both areas so that a conservatory could be constructed on a slightly elevated platform. “This has transformed the house, providing extra living space for a wonderful, easy lifestyle,” says Andrea. “I love cooking and entertaining and having my children over for Sunday lunch. A table that was too big for the living area fits perfectly into one end of the conservatory so we can look out at the garden and, in the evenings, when the blinds are open, enjoy the stars.”

After the conservatory was built, there was still room for what Andrea terms a ‘cocktail’ pool raised up out of the ground with a granite coping that provides extra seating. The surrounds were covered with artificial grass inset with pavers and a shrub hedge planted as a windbreak and for privacy.