Kingswood HOA

The window that ‘frames the course’, according to interior designer pictured left Idonia Chandler, is one of the most significant and aesthetically pleasing aspects of the refurbished gatehouse.

Bringing the game into the gatehouse

Idonia Chandler exudes equal measures of confidence and elegance when sitting down to talk about the recently completed upgrade of the Kingswood gatehouse.

That selfsame elegance is evident when you enter the space she has transformed with the primary goal of ‘bringing the golf course inside’. The most important of these changes was breaking through the eastern facade to provide an elevated view of the rolling greens in front of the gatehouse building.

Looking at her extensive portfolio, it’s fully understandable that the Kingswood Homeowners Association (HOA) had chosen Idonia as top candidate for the job.

Based in George, this visionary interior expert has been instrumental in beautifying private homes, golf estates and tourism establishments along the length and breadth of the Garden Route, as well as prestigious commercial projects across South Africa, in Zambia and Mauritius. Idonia’s expertise ranges from interior design and space planning to project management. Defining her style as modern contemporary, she excels at mixing different elements and textures. Her work has featured in numerous magazines and on TV’s Top Billing, one of her projects contending as Top 10 Homes of the Year.

‘After an initial brief, I started the gatehouse project by the end of November 2019,’ she says. ‘Kingswood being a working golf club, work was always going to be concluded in phases. Plans progressed nicely until the first Covid lockdowns halted all operations last year.’

Kingswood HOA Properties (Pty) Ltd was founded to house the golf course and related assets such as the future clubhouse. It is solely owned by the HOA, i.e. home owners of the estate, who have full control of how the brand is used and perceived going forward. As these matters go, there were nearly as many opinions on the direction that the upgrade should take as there were board members involved. But Idonia won the day when pointing out that spectacular results could be attained by reusing existing furniture and structures, thereby stretching the available budget to maximum effect.

‘It’s really satisfying to show what can be done when reupholstering couches, or repainting walls and tables – you can literally do magic with paint. Throw in a few new carpets and the end product is bound to please the most critical of clients.

‘I trust my amazing team and our suppliers implicitly, which helped to facilitate our three-week turnaround period.’ The refurbished gatehouse was ready for use by Easter as envisaged.

‘I’m proud and grateful every time staff or board members share their positive feedback with me. Some of the personnel claim that the refurb has truly lifted their morale, which makes my work here all the more gratifying,’ she says.

Idonia, which means ‘loving one’ in Old Norse, clearly has a passion for her trade, and her unique touch now ensures that the gatehouse serves as soft landing for everyone entering its doors.