The Perfect Combination

An architect used steel-frame windows, raw concrete and rough wood to create an earthy industrial-style home for his family.

- Beatrice Moore-Nöthnagel

When architect Warrick Raubenheimer sat down to design his own home, it kept evolving into something he’d either seen or done before, but he desperately wanted to create something different.

Although not a new concept, once he and his wife Theodora started to explore the idea of old-school steel-frame windows, things began to fall into place and soon other design elements such as large timber roof beams and raw concrete ceilings followed. And while Warrick says the house doesn’t have a particular style, it definitely leans towards an industrial composition, thanks to the striking black steel-frame windows.

The couple started building in 2017 after acquiring a large portion of land on the edge of the Ongegund Village on the outskirts of Riebeek West. “The plot overlooks vineyards and the length of the Kasteelberg Mountain and it was this fantastic setting that was the attraction,” says Warrick. Ongegund Village was previously a centre for a PPC cement mine and today it is fast becoming a popular address as a result of the upgrade of the existing homes as new families move into the area.