smitten

dry branch found on  Arniston beach..

 Nord... Sud...Est... Quest ...

In a previous post
http://labrocanteuse.blogspot.com/2010/07/beach-house.html 
I shared our beach house with you.

  I adore our beach house in Vermont and the lifestyle that comes with it...I have been known to pack up and stay  all summer with visits from husband and friends that don't mind the trek down south to visit with us there...

 there is another beachhouse that touched my heart  that I  would like to share,
a friend's house in Arniston.

The owners sourced old building materials, extra wide planks for the floors,
 old doors and windows with  shutters.

To stay in tune with the historical style of Arniston, the house was built like the original Arniston houses,(see images of "Kassiesbaai" in a previous post. -clad with stone from the area and then lime washed, a thatch roof  also from grass sourced in the Overberg,completes the house.

On entering you feel like this could be the original house first built in Arniston two hundred years ago-


 I admire  how the owners has managed to "control" the style of  decor...in order to stay true to the Arniston area which is a Heritage site.

-no typical "beach house" style all blue and white...but rather really old pieces of furniture-  sourced  with time.Each piece is unique and one of a kind. Original paint has been left as found. 

old grain bags add textile texture

 there is not a single "new" item to be found in this house. well maybe just a few essentials...

... like the Smeg cooker range in the kitchen...and then very cleverly overpowered by cabinets made using old fruit packing boxes,   fridges are hidden behind old doors...

do you see the continuation of the old boats in the harbor?...(previous post)













 at the foot of each bed is a old original wooden "kis" or box to store extra bedding.

  comfortable seating and quiet ambiance

 shells and driftwood collected with time

this house demands a special lifestyle..

easy, laid back ,and content
  it's beauty lies in it's honest portraying of  all that is necessary...

 

 the fauna a flora growing on the beach...

reflects the colors of the old wood 

"potskerwe" 
-old broken pieces of porcelain  found washed up 

   children enjoy cycling to the harbor to watch the fishing boats come in.. swimming and playing in the waves, building sandcastles, dune riding,...and then tell stories before falling asleep in a loft where one is allowed to be whatever you want to be.. a princess or a rock star, these are the happy days that will be remembered forever....

the furniture in the loft gets changed around as the "set" demands 

for both princesses and heroes..

happy days

happy memories 

 is there a more photographed image then sunset on the beach?...

"bokkoms" ~ salted dried fish

I have come to the conclusion that the less one has to style and dust when on holiday..the more you relax and find yourself. I also know that if everyone is relaxed and happy...the world is a good place, no matter what.

the most beautiful objects are free..

this house

for the feeling of quiet simplicity

that it shares  to all who enter through the door....

that is priceless.

 with thanks

Colx

all images in this post is by me

chair and beach in 2nd and 3rd image-our  Vermont Beach house

Southern tip of Africa

On impulse we decided to take a few days off from home..and headed south..to a little  fishing village called 

Arniston.

 Arniston forms part of a few villages bordering the most southern tip of Africa, Cape Agulhas being at the most south-a few kilometers on.

we live in STELLENBOSCH  which is situated to the west of the map, 50 km inland from CAPE TOWN    Arniston is a 3 hour drive to the south.

 there it is...the almost tip of Africa!

Arniston Harbour

1836

Arniston is a small seaside settlement in the Overberg  region on the Cape South coast, close to Cape Agulhas,  the southern-most tip of Africa .

 Prior to the loss of the Arniston, it was known as Waenhuiskrans, an Afrikaans name meaning literally  "Wagon house cliff", after a local sea cave large enough to accommodate a wagon and a span of oxen.

In May 1815, a British East Indiaman, the Arniston, was rounding the Cape in convoy on a journey to repatriate wounded English soldiers from Ceylon.

 The ship lacked a chronometer – an expensive instrument at the time – and consequently had to rely on other ships in the fleet to calculate the longitude  of the group. After being separated from the convoy in heavy seas, the captain of the Arniston was obliged to rely solely on dead reckoning  to navigate. Thinking incorrectly he was 100 miles west of the Cape of Good Hope, the master steered north for St Helena and ran the ship onto the rocks at Waenhuiskrans. Only six of the 378 souls on board survived the stranding. 

The survivors spent several days on the beach before being discovered by a farmer's son.  A memorial, a replica of which can be seen today, was erected on the beach by the wife of Colonel Giels, whose four unaccompanied children were lost in the tragedy

At first only a fishing community, Arniston has become a renowned holiday destination and its hinterland a respected region for viticulture. The fishing village - characterized by its lime-washed and thatched houses - remains unspoiled and has been declared a National Monument in its entirety. Fishermen still go to sea in boats of the style that would have been familiar to locals in the early nineteenth century.Whale watching  is a popular tourist activity. 

Kassiesbaai

Fishing is a integrated part of Arniston, it is the fishermen's heritage, it is their pride, their livelihood.

The fishermen's village Kassiesbaai, lies to the left of the town, the one and only hotel can be seen on the very left of the image below and has been turned into the four star Arniston Spa- hotel.

this is a postcard of the hotel  we stayed-

 my apologies for not taking a better photograph.

We were captivated by the colorful fishing boats. Early morning one hear the men getting ready to  take to  the sea, all excited and eager they load their gear, nets and fresh water and meals to be enjoyed out there... far into the sea. Some times they stay out all day and night, returning with the tide. huge grins can be seen from the little harbor - their families waiting. Local visitors and permanent residents, have access to the freshest fish daily. 

 We go down to Arniston every start of the new year, it just happened one year and it has become a tradition to visit here on our wedding anniversary.

  this little village has touched a very special place in my heart...the humble way these people make fishing their living..their spontaneity, their sharing with others..

it almost makes me long for less "stuff" and more

just the essential...

the beauty that changes with each tide, and yet stays the same.

I would love to spend longer then just a few days in this  beautiful village..long enough to notice a new paint color on a much loved boat..
can you imagine...choosing a new color...or touching up with a new "band" of red or yellow..those are important decisions to make!

 I love how the paintwork is naturally chipped and worn away..

What stories could MRS H share?....

DD enjoying the waves

 I am always ready to go right back to this beautiful little village... and further on to Cape Agulhas where two oceans meet..

Colx

take time

image~ La Brocanteuse~

-table scape for a friends birthday:theme: Wisdom with Time

Hello Blog land, hello Blog friends

As time passes, there are new beginnings

and so it is for me

image:~La Brocanteuse  ~

  our Conservatory 

I have had time to make a long list of what needs to be done

around the garden

new topiaries, more boxwood,more white, new herb garden

image: from my garden file~ inspiration for a back wall I would like to do

plant: Star Jasmine 

image:~  la Brocanteuse~

 painting found at brocante in France, Olive branch from garden in old provencal jar 

in our home

some new upholstery where needed,

design study nook for DD since she is growing up fast,

let go of unused crockery,stuff for "maybe" days 

 and clothes I will never fit in again 

 more time with friends,

healthy lifestyle

image:~ la Brocanteuse~

 rolls of linen and hemp in laundry basket -waiting to be used as upholstery

image: ~La Brocanteuse~

  at the Beach house

complete refurbish- looking forward to this!!

it has been ten years of looking the same so change is good.

image:  ~la Brocanteuse~from beach house

important:

 new Brocante finds to be found

image:~la Brocanteuse~

 la Poste Sac

Need:

 Trouvaille  for my  Brocante and events

images:~la Brocanteuse 

 linen and textiles  found on a previous trip to French country side 

 image: ~ la Brocanteuse
trouvaille for my Brocante 2010 




must plan: 
Sortie to:
  France-countryside
                 Africa -Okavango Delta - Botswana 
weekend getaways,Concerts  and shows to attend 
(to feed the cultural diet)
                 

I wish you twelve happy months 2011

Colx

image: ~la Brocanteuse~

 booklet with wise words given to us by a friend many moons ago

perhaps I need more then twelve months for all the above!

Blessings to you

I am home. 

 We will spend a quiet and blessed Christmas 2010.

I will be back in the new year with regular posts...

so until then,

I wish you all well,

and

a truly blessed time with family and friends

I will be visiting  your blogs on this side

much love

Colx

December ~ 2nd

image : Colette

~ Christmas wreath made from shells collected at summerhouse~

2002

Colx

1st December

image ~ Christmas at the beach house 2008

There's more, much more to Christmas

Than just candle-lights and cheer;

It's the spirit of sweet friendship

That brightens all the years;

It is thoughtfulness and kindness,

It is hope that is reborn again,

For peace, for understanding

And for goodwill to humans...

- Author Unknown

Colx