Self-Catering

“Do we have BEFORE photos?!”

‘That looks great! You know what we should do?…we should post before and after pics on our blog!’

‘Do we have ‘BEFORE’ photos?!’

While updating our details on Booking.com some time ago they asked when the last time was we upgraded our guesthouses. The answer was, ‘a couple of weeks ago’. But it struck me then as a strange question. We’re always busy upgrading. Most of the time its smaller things like placing frosting on some of the windows, or replacing curtains with blinds. But we’re constantly saying things like, ‘As soon as we have enough money in our fund we have to … ‘ And the list is ever growing. Its more dreaming out loud than actual hard planning. So it was about a year ago we decided to upgrade the front garden of Helens Cottage…and forgot to take ‘before’ photos.

DeKeurboom garden layout plan.

With the looming drought we decided to go for a artificial lawn, and indigenous plants. Having a green garden at the cost of high water usage was no longer an option and artificial lawns in an area that would not have much foot-traffic was a no-brainer. Thus followed the long arguments of how we would renovate the garden. Both Linda and myself loved the idea of re-creating this little space, but seeing as I was going to be the person doing the actual work, my voice carried a little more weight. Se settled on a slightly ambitious, but simple brick path running down the centre, with a reclaimed fountain, tree and bird bath planted at intervals. Easy! Now al we had to do, was do it. Armed with Gift, my friendly side kick and gardener, inspired and inexperienced we set out to make it happen!

Step one,

Remove about 50 wheelbarrows worth of garden rocks. Step one was about as much fun as you’d expect, but with that done…

Step two,

POWERTOOLS! Much more fun! (For us at least, the neighbours not so much)
Gift and myself rented a compactor and set to work flattening and levelling the soil in the garden.

Step three,

We started laying the little pathway. As it turns out creating a curved little path (as per our sketch) would be a real struggle, so we opted for a little less ambitious straight path.

Dekeurboom Garden renovation.

Step four,

Cementing the path, and building the two flowerbeds.

Step five,

We had to raise the level of the ground in the two areas next to the path. So wheelbarrow (again) and compactor (also again).

Leveling the areas next to the path and laying down a ground-sheet.

Step six,

Cut the ground sheets and artificial lawn to size and shape, then hammer them in place using giant nails.

Step seven,

Paint the fountain.
We gave the fountain a dark brown undercoat, painted it liberally with wood glue, and applied the turquoise paint on the wet (bear with us) wood glue. This causes the top coat to crack and look aged when drying. We stole this idea here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_wH-xpfCM0

Step eight,

Plant the Clivias and cover the soil with tree bark to help save on water evaporation.

Step nine,

Contact the estate agents and ask them if they have any photos of the garden before we went to work on it…SUCCESS!

All in all the entire process took Gift and myself about three days with regular breaks for rain.

Final before and after.

5 Good reasons to visit De Keurboom Guesthouse in Autumn

Annual South African Cheese Festival:

Takes place at Sandringham near Stellenbosch, with the spotlight on cheese and good wine. Where else would such a perfect combination be more suitable than in the Cape Winelands? Although cheese is the main focus of this festival, music, food demonstrations, a kiddie’s corner and various different ways of cheese art is on display. This is a family fun-filled experience, a definite item for your bucket list. Book at De Keurboom to visit this festival, only 20km away.

Suidoosterfees:

This annual festival takes place end April beginning May at the Artscape Theatre in Cape Town and pays tribute to the Mother City’s diverse lifestyle and cultures. It is a 5-day festival and is home to some of the most popular South African household names in the theatre business. If theatre is your passion this is the time to pay a visit to De Keurboom Guesthouse, we’re a mere 30 minutes’ drive from The Artscape theatre.

Cableway Kidz Season:

Starts in May and runs through to 30th September.  During this period two children ride free with an adult who has purchased a return ticket. Children enjoy a day of fun, food and breath-taking views from the top of one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. As part of Kidz Season all children receive a treasure hunt map as well as a sweet treat when they hand in their voucher at the Café on top of the mountain. A 30 minutes’ drive will take you from De Keurboom Guesthouse to the Table Mountain ticket office.

Riebeek Valley Olive Festival:

Take a ride through the beautiful landscapes of the Cape Winelands to the quaint little village of Riebeeck Kasteel to visit the famous Olive Festival. Get a taste of your favourite olive goodies, jams, pickles, preserves, tapenades, extra-virgin olive oil and delicious olive breads. Take a walk through the olive-groves and relax with a craft-beer  and some live music. If you feel like breaking away from the city, this ride is a mere hour away from De Keurboom Guesthouse.

Stellenbosch Oyster and Bubbly Festival:

If you’re more of an Oyster connoisseur this is the festival not to be missed. Loads of bubbly and fresh oysters straight off the fire. For those who don’t fancy slurping an oyster there’s live entertainment to accompany the wide selection of bubbly. If you’re a lover of this delicatessen, book at De Keurboom Guesthouse, the drive to Stellenbosch will take you no longer than 15 minutes, and will take you through a breath-taking route of vineyards and mountain views.

Fully booked for The Two Oceans Marathon

Runners on the Two Oceans Marathon rounding Capmans Peak.
Two Oceans Marathon

This epic event takes place during Easter Weekend in Cape Town and had De Keurboom Guesthouse jam-packed with runners!

While visiting they extended their stay and made the most of visiting some of the major attractions in the Cape Town Big 7 – from the beautiful beaches, the epic Table Mountain, Cape Point, Robben Island Museum and the V & A Waterfront.

Already visited all of the above?
Fall in love with some of the neighbourhoods outside of the city.

Durbanville is known for its wine valley and mountain bike tracks, and only 8 kilometers from De Keurboom Guesthouse. Khayelitsha offer interesting art and culture tours, Lourensford wine farm near Somerset West plays host to a popular family-friendly market every weekend, and only 25km from De Keurboom Guesthouse.  Zevenwacht Wine Estate offers wine tasting and picnics in the garden, and is only 4 km from De Keurboom Guesthouse, literally on our doorstep.

After sunset, come for a movie experience at one of the many different open air locations. Catch a movie under the stars with the The Galileo Open Air Cinema at:
Central Park in Century City. (15 km from De Keurboom Guesthouse)
Vergenoegd Wine Estate. (30km from De Keurboom)
Kelvin Grove. (40km away)

More of an art person? Kick back and relax on the lawns of the Green Point Cricket Grounds. Enjoying a fantastic line-up of local musicians and gourmet food from the many stalls.

Already thinking about entering for next year’s 2 Oceans Marathon? Book early at De Keurboom, you will enjoy excellent accommodation at affordable tariffs.