That' 70s Show

Following her passion for plants, antiques and local design, actress Rolanda Marais has transformed a mid-century house in Cape Town into a happy family home

- PIET SMEDY

Rolanda Marais and her husband, director Jozua Malherbe, were first introduced to their now art- and plant-filled, mid-century family home by a friend, shortly after leaving Joburg for the leafy Northern Suburbs of Cape Town. The couple was renting just around the corner and, as luck would have it, it was not long before the house was listed. ‘We went to have a look at it and fell in love,’ says Rolanda – and that was that. ‘I love the clean lines, the abundance of timber and glass to let in natural light and the overall aesthetic,’ says Rolanda of her home’s retro appeal. ‘Perhaps it is because I grew up in that era and recognise a lot of the pieces or maybe it is something from a previous life, I do not know, I am just instinctively drawn to it.’ But, as anyone who has ever taken ownership of an older house can attest, it is hardly ever a case of unpack and go. ‘The house needed a lot of work; it had been a rental for eight years, so it was in desperate need of maintenance but the structure and the personality were there. It had solid bones with some amazing architectural moments, it just needed the right owners,’ she says.