Solmar encapsulates that picture-perfect postcard of dreamy seaside holidays in Cape Town, where family memories are etched into the sands of Llandudno beach.
Holding poise like the graceful dame of the Atlantic Seaboard, settling her Cape Dutch stance beneath the mountain, gazing over the ocean like the regal lady of Llandudno, Solmar seamlessly combines the old with the new world it lives in. Retaining a compendium of her heritage, and marrying it with all of the essentials.
Her original gables supported by her sturdy bones let you in on many of her secrets from long ago. Being one of the first homes to be built in this lovely, secluded seaside hamlet. Subtle whispers of her age-old wisdom are heard around the fireplace with the original hand-painted Dutch tiles and timber lintel. So many stories all around the living, dining and entertaining spaces of the home. All of the five cosy, yet incredibly spacious, sea-facing bedrooms.
The beautiful accompanying bathrooms. The additional TV lounge, added on for family entertainment. The country-style kitchen and bar area. The long-stretching outdoor areas, and pockets of tranquility in the garden. Tales being told at very turn. All bounded by a timeless sheath of familial companionship.
The relationship of the outdoors seeping through the open doors and windows, and earnestly embracing the interior spaces. A partnership of personalities coming together in harmony. Just like the owner and her Interior Designer friend, Anna Welthagen, have achieved together. Fostering the integrity of the home.
Layering the textures of the natural world into every room, nurturing its history and embellishing every space with earthy tones, romantic furnishings and evocative artworks. Soft, seductive fabrics and linens that totally induce that holiday mood. Solmar really does inhabit the idyllic beach house essence. It’s all about the textures, the tones and the temperament. And then there’s that view!
Slow beach walks and early evening dips
Being perfectly located almost immediately upon the shoreline, it’ll take you less than two minutes to get into the sea. Depending on your approach to cold-water dipping. A slow meander down the dirt track, beneath the milkwood and the palms, over the boulders, onto the sand and into the waves. What a way to start the day. Perhaps a long coastal stroll along the cliffs to Sandy Bay.
A surf or another paddle and then back for more coffee on the verandah. Watching the whales and the dolphins go about their own aquatic display. Catch some rays around the swimming pool that’s delightfully deep and inspires those retro pool parties where the parasols sway with the chatter and the breeze. Quiet moments in the garden, beneath the canopy of giant palms and strelizia.
A lovely spot to sit and contemplate the next meal. Back to the verandah for some spectacular sunset watching and sundowner sipping. Listening to the evening birds and the flames from the fire-pit starting to crackle. The perfect place to gather when the stars come out and let those long fireside chats loose! Then indoors to the entertaining areas or to your own suites where the ocean sounds engulf, reminding you of your location and how healthy it is to have a holiday beside the sea.
Reviewed by Colleen Ogilvie