OUR STORY

The stand was purchased in 2008 by Skoeperfly Trust after Con and Liezel were looking for a place to retreat to and escape a busy city and work life.  

Con’s preference was for the Bushveld (he grew up in the Kruger National Park), and Liezel for a small village with no tar roads and a view of the mountains and/or ocean. 

After scouting a few possible options in two provinces in South Africa, they realised they needed a place close to Gauteng that would not involve more than 2 hours driving or any flying (at that stage Con was spending a lot of time  in airports and on planes).

They explored a number of the private game reserves close to Bela-Bela, and when they drove into the newly developed Zwartkloof Private Game Reserve, realised that it would meet their needs for privacy, tranquility and contemporary architecture.

The stand was selected because Con wanted to be in the bush (rather than overlooking it) and it had a variety of trees and game paths, and Liezel loved that it had a view down the valley.

Liezel did the concept floor and interior and exterior design plans on a piece of paper for the architect. The design ensured there was space and flow that merged with nature. As they have twins (then seven years old), the two wings of the house mirror each other.

It took them a couple of years to finalise the plans between busy work schedules and an overseas expat assignment. The plans often travelled with them on flights to soak and marinate on – it once got left behind in a luggage trolley at the departure gate of Cape Town International Airport – and the final review of the plans took place over a bottle of red wine in the village of Samobor in Croatia.

Con designed the outside braai (BBQ) area and open fire pit, which was measured out to scale with the boys more than 10,000km away on a tar road next to their villa in Doha, Qatar. Liezel designed the outside shower, and the builder was requested to wait for her to arrive in South Africa to lay the stones in the floor. 

The house was completed in 2015, and newly furnished by Liezel and Marcel during a whirlwind two-week trip to South Africa.

The house has been available to rent since 2019 directly from the Trust so that others can also enjoy it. The Blignauts frequently visit and often work from there .

The reviews speak for itself – we have had wonderful guests who love the house, the backdrop of nature and their time there.