Some beach houses are simply imbued with a carefree happiness. They make you smile. This is one of them, atop a fynbos-clad eyrie in Misty Cliffs on the Southern Peninsula. Ironically, Henning, its architect-owner is not local yet he’s intuitively chosen colours that resonate perfectly with everything Capetonians love about this cliffside village along the pristine shores of the peninsula. And he has an impeccable eye for detail… he repainted the kitchen three times before he was content with the indescribably beautiful hues of a coral-red protea that blooms prolifically here.
The study is a remote-worker’s haven with arguably the best views in the house and three locally crafted, wooden Spaas desks already set up with screens – just don’t look up or you’ll be mesmerized by waves and whales in the sea below and be tempted to grab that surfboard. Or stipple a giant whale artwork on the living room wall as Henning did. ‘I wanted to create this big mural showing the types of whales that actually pass by the house. Inspired by historic prints of whale illustrations, I decided on a drawing technique I had never tried before. I just pencilled a rough outline but it took me some guts to start making dots with a permanent marker on the freshly renovated wall!’ he laughs.
Such is life here at Upper Camp Lookout. It’s where you make your own rules, do your own thing – work or play, you decide, and who is going to know when you’re ensconced in the sunny day bed window or having a braai lunch on the back terrace under the mountain? You’ll be listening to the many calls of boubou shrikes and watching sunbirds dip and drink nectar from the flowering fynbos that is a natural wonder in this part of the world.
At Upper Camp Lookout, it’s the details that count – from the striped wallpapers that complement the paint colours to the stylish Joon storage from another local designer. ‘I found the perfect wallpaper in Sweden, while the fabric is locally made in South Africa as well as the handmade ceramic tiles in the bathrooms. There are also pieces added from Germany and Belgium so our families’ background is represented in the design. It was important to me that on the one hand you have a consistent design throughout the house, but also create distinct rooms and spaces. It should not be an all-cappuccino, generic design. I decided on the bold colours that you find here – the night sky, the sandy beach, the greens of fynbos or the protea flower.’ Today, this not-so-little wooden beach house, has all this and more.
And how can we forget the generous woodburning stove for cooler evenings and hot water bottles in their own specially labelled drawer? Or the swing bench on the deck where glorious sunsets glow late into the evening. Everything has a place here, including a delightful pair of adult and kids binocs hanging just beneath the whales, at-the-ready for sighting tell-tale spouts or flukes slapping the bluest waters of the Atlantic below. Cold-water swims are de rigueur here, and short hops to the health deli down the road make you realise that the warm and welcoming community along these shores is actually pretty much pretending they are on holiday all year!
And why wouldn’t you? As Henning says, ‘Misty Cliffs is this wild, romantic gem where you have turquoise waves and burning sunsets, all with a bit of mistiness above the sea that makes it so magical.’
What we love!
• That this is the home of an organised architect!
• Hands-down, the location! It’s the perfect lookout with panoramic views up and down the coast. Even when you stand in the middle of the house, you can see the sea, the mountains, the coastline.
• That it’s an off-peak escape with a large, central fireplace: spring and autumn here is especially dramatic – firstly, the flowers, and secondly the spectacular sunsets. For some reason, they literally glow in the cooler seasons.
• The funky workspace leading off the front deck – a rare find in beach houses.
• Beautiful books and good selection of games.
What you need to know…
• The steps: there are rather a lot of them (as with all houses in this area), but there’s off-street parking, and you can take your time as you’re on holiday! Anyway, the views are incredible.
• The upstairs bedroom is a mezzanine floor with sliding glass doors for privacy but it is not en suite – that doesn’t seem to bother anyone as whoever sleeps up there enjoys the space and the views.
• The downstairs bedrooms are cosy and on either side of the central kitchen, and they both have mountain views.
• Scarborough and Kommetjie are the closest villages, with a few restaurants and shopping only at small delis, but Simon’s Town and Noordhoek both have larger shopping malls – both about 15-20 minutes’ drive away.
Reviewed by Michelle Snaddon