The More, The Merrier

People, pets, plants and paintings all contribute to a warm and welcoming family home.

- Shané Barnard

Large windows that let in plenty of light, open-plan spaces conducive to socialising, andenough wall space to display their art collections – these were top of Harold and Ané Spies’s wish list when they bought a tiny house in a leafy Stellenbosch suburb seven years ago.

The couple enlisted the help of Hein Visser of VKdB Architects to help design their dream home, on condition that the existing building form part of the structure. Harold, a real estate developer, then worked with the building contractor to make their dream a reality.

“Since Harold works in the construction industry, he was able to get hold of most of the materials himself,” explains Ané. “As far as possible, we tried to do things ourselves. If our budget had allowed for it, we would probably have demolished the old house so it wouldn’t affect the design of the new house, but we needed every one of those original bricks to stay standing!”

What was once a dark, cramped “block of butter” house with a single garage is now a spacious, contemporary home perfect for entertaining and having the kids’ friends over to play.

A warm welcome

In addition to their three children, Bernese Mountain Dog Antjie, young Golden Retriever Uli, and three cats, the couple also share their home with two students. But space is not an issue as the footprint of the original building – which now houses the bedrooms and the kids’ playroom – was enlarged by 380m² during the construction.