Working between Africa and Europe, Katy Mills and Julian Robinet were in search of a spot where they could take it easy during their downtime. "We're both freelancers and we wanted a space where we can relax and clear our minds when we're not working," says Julian.
In 2020, Katy spent a few of the winter months in Graaff-Reinet and this Great Karoo town proved to be the ideal escape from Cape Town, where the couple usually hole up. The clear skies of the Karoo were a big drawcard in comparison to the wet, rainy winters of the Mother City.
"So, instead of taking a holiday overseas, we've been escaping to the Karoo since 2021," says Julian with a smile. At first, the couple stayed with friends, but when the opportunity presented itself, they decided to buy a place of their own.
The house, believed to be built sometime between 1880 and 1890, is on one of the original streets in Graaff-Reinet, just two blocks up from the iconic Dutch Reformed Church. It is built in the Cape Dutch Karoo style with thick walls, a front veranda and a white-painted facade.
The previous owner renovated the house in 2017 with the intention to retire here, but her plans changed and Julian and Katy took over. "But it was almost a little too modern and so the alterations we made afterwards were specifically done with the intention to blend the new with the old."
Making changes
The very first change the couple made was to replace all the contemporary white aluminium window frames and sliding doors with traditional black steel school frames, which is more in line with the style of the building. "The new window frames were manufactured in Cape Town and transported all the way to the Karoo - it was a bit of a nightmare and definitely the most stressful part of the renovation as they ended up bending a bit and they were also bigger than anticipated!" explains Julian.
This story is from the May/June 2023 edition of Home South Africa.
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This story is from the May/June 2023 edition of Home South Africa.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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