'GOOD FOR THE planet GOOD FOR US'

The dream of having a "natural vineyard" led to these city dwellers building an eco house with their own hands, using soil from their own land.

-  Elna van der Merwe

In 2020, they were two regular city kids from Sea Point, with words like "Uber Eats" and "promenade" part of their everyday vocabulary. But since living in Tesselaarsdal, new phrases such as "gravity-fed toilet" and "future-proof vineyard" now roll off their tongues just as easily.

Here, Bianca Antunes and her life partner Rob de Barros's one-bedroom home, Vineyard Cottage, sits on top of a hill overlooking the Overberg Valley and surrounded by the Riviersonderend Mountains. The reason for them settling in this corner of the country, 25km outside Caledon? A vineyard - Bianca's longstanding dream.

"It took me nine months to find a piece of sloping land where I could plant my vineyard so that one day I would be able to produce my very own natural wine," she explains.

When Bianca talks about "natural wine", she means that Mother Nature is in charge in fact, her vineyard wouldn't even be irrigated. But the fact that Bianca and Rob would eventually also build a house with only what the environment had to offer wasn't part of the original plan.

Bianca not only designed their house, but also the island and floating shelves in the kitchen (left). "I found a talented carpenter, Grant Burroughs of Sedgefield, who got hold of white oak and made the island. Although our house is simple, our kitchen is very well-equipped with quality appliances."

Gas stove from Smeg; pots from Le Creuset; pottery from Bakgat Pottery and Mervyn Gers; floating shelves made by Herman Burger of HR Cupboards; island by Grant Burroughs of Wood 'n Things; kitchen counter from Mebel; stools from Chair Crazy; Woodstock rug from Hertex; colourful cotton throw (right) from Mungo.

From farmers...