Casa Labia in Muizenberg is a sumptuous echo of 19th century Venice, with an elegant restaurant to match
Just beyond the surf shops and cafés of Muizenberg, on the coastal road to St James, is an astonishing piece of history. Flashback to 1926 Cape Town when Natale Labia, the first Italian ambassador to South Africa, had a yearning to build a house that reminded him of his childhood home, Palazzo Labia on Venice’s Grand Canal. He commissioned South African architect Frederick McIntosh Glennie, a contemporary of renowned English architect Sir Herbert Baker, to build an ocean-view residence combining Baker arches, gable-shaped doors and fanlights with Italianate arches, pillars and a cherubic ceiling fresco. Pipes laid under the road filled a salt-water swimming pool, and interior items were shipped out from Italy: chandeliers, gold-leaf ceiling panels, mirrors, silk wallpaper.
Denne historien er fra January 2018-utgaven av House and Leisure.
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Denne historien er fra January 2018-utgaven av House and Leisure.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
At The Breakfast Table With Jonty Rhodes And Family
Recently renovated, the historic Cape Town home of Jonty and Melanie Rhodes is an adaptable base for an active, clean-eating clan of six
LUNCH IN THE GARDEN with siblings Bronwyn and Jonathan Cane
Alfresco gatherings are the order of the day at this updated century-old semi – the home of a design-centric sister and brother in Brixton, Joburg
IN THE KITCHEN with Karen Dudley and family
For Karen Dudley, food informs the family dynamic and her home is as multilayered and as delicious a delight as her colourful personality and cooking style
THE TRADITIONAL KITCHEN
The perfect piece to pull together a country-style kitchen is a beautiful wooden table that will age with time and hold its place in the memories made around it.
IN THE FRAME
'The history of architecture is the history of the struggle for light.’
DRINKS AT THE TABLE with David Cope and Donné Bullivant
A dream kitchen renovation meant wine lovers Dave Cope and Donné Bullivant could finally settle down in their wondrously moody City Bowl apartment
THE MODULAR KITCHEN
DECOR TIP Modular elements like these USM Haller systems are a great way to create interesting, non-permanent storage that can be customised to your needs.
SUPPER IN THE BARN with the Thatenhorst family
Munich-based interior designer Stephanie Thatenhorst transformed the barn at her parents’ farm in Bavaria into an eclectic family retreat
BREAKING BREAD
The pendulum has swung back for this nutritious, crusty staple of flour, yeast, water and time – the much-beloved artisanal loaf
SNACKS ON THE TERRACE with sisters Vicky Crease and Maira Koutsoudakis
The traditional Cycladic home of dynamic sisters Vicky Crease and Maira Koutsoudakis on the island of Serifos is a reminder of what it means to be a part of a close-knit family
