Sunset Boulevard

A Coastal Home In Cape Town Steers Clear Of Cliches In Favour Of A Fun Frolic Into Hollywood Regency

- Julia Freemantle

As a designer who doesn't like doing the same thing twice but whose style identity is well-developed, John Jacob, of John Jacob Interiors, was the ideal candidate to create an atypical beach house that offered high-end elegance and a fresh take on a tried-and-tested recipe, without being outlandish.

‘When I first met with the client, I sensed he had a well-developed sense of style. He also wanted something fun and vibrant, and I wanted to avoid stereotypes,’ explains John. The designer's upbeat opulence and fearless use of colour was a far cry from the low-key road many designers take with coastal briefs. ‘My approach was to be unapologetically maximalist. And then, when I felt I'd done too much, I'd stop,’ he explains.

Despite its unmistakably breezy air, the house is a million miles from the South African coastal cliche. ‘I didn't want to express that casual-coastal-meets-bushlodge recipe with this space,’ he says. That aesthetic can slide into ‘schlumpfy’, so it was to be avoided at all costs. ‘It's a nice idea but it's hard to make ‘schlumpfy’ chic.’ And chic this home is courtesy of a heavy dose of Hollywood Regency hedonism.