House Tour: Francois and Tracy's Wonderland Cape Town

Name: Francois van Reenen & Tracy Lynch
Location: Observatory, Cape Town
Size: 2200 sq.ft.
Years lived in: 1, owned

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Visiting Francois and Tracy’s colorful home means a trip into their creative souls. The moment you set foot through the front door, you enter a wonderland where ideas and inspirations explode in every room. Francois’s art combined with Tracy’s stylist touch creates the most beautiful and unusual interior. There is a lot going on, but the items are in perfect harmony, each piece is carefully curated and tells a story...

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They have successfully combined fun with function, each room has a different look and feel, whilst still fulfilling the needs of the household. The kitchen is painted top to bottom in blackboard paint, the guest bedroom doubles as a workstation and inspiration corner for Tracy, and the walls proudly adorn the couple's own creations. To visit this home is reminiscent of childhood trips to a sweet shop... it is impossible to leave without a smile.
To see more of their work visit:
Francois van Reenen and
Tracy Lynch

AT Survey:

My/Our Style: Frank — Acid Pop. Tracy — Mary Poppins meets Louis XIV meets Shaka Zulu

Inspiration: Too many Espressos, Truman the French Bulldog, what ever is going at the time

Favorite Element: Strontium (its on the periodic table)

Biggest Challenge: The Screamer (our 10 month old baby)

What Friends Say: They think he's gay

Biggest Embarrassment: I wore non matching shoes in public, one boot one shoe. How does that actually happen in the real world? Well, I drive my car with a missing gas pedal spring, so I had to take my shoe off to hook the pedal with my toe. Eventually there where a couple of shoes lying on the floor and it was dark and voila! Only noticed it when I crossed my legs sitting down on a recliner in a well lit club, Ouch!

Proudest DIY: What's DIY?

Biggest Indulgence: Those pink cup cakes from Lasari’s. (A renown bakery in Cape Town)

Best Advice: Listen to that little inner voice

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Resources:

Tracy cruises the 2nd hand stores for almost everything in our house

Artwork: Frank van Reenen mostly and Conrad Botes, Tracy Payne, Anton Kannemeyer

Paint: Local Hardware Store

Flooring: It came with the house

Comments (29)

lovely, lively, fun. what is that beautiful poem etched or affixed to the glass door/window?

This place is completely awesome!!! Hands down, my favourite house tour ever.

"Favorite Element: Strontium (its on the periodic table)"

Okay, that just made me laugh way too hard XD Chemistry nerds, unite! (My favourite element is Caesium.)

I adore and NEED that vintage ray gun.

this is amazing! i would love to spend a week in your heads! as creepy as it may sound...!

p.s. i did think it bordered on the feminine side (not just color, but pink would be the main bias)... but big props to a straight man who can enjoy pink this much!!

What a fun place. Cape Town rocks.

i'm in love with your place and aesthetic, and pink isn't even my thing.... and your daughter? how insanely cute (and chubby) is she?

love love LOVE the frenchie paintings!!

Francois and Tracy, will you adopt me? What a lovely, dreamy place.

"lovely, lively, fun. what is that beautiful poem etched or affixed to the glass door/window?"

I'm not sure what the name is, but it's by Rumi. It's hard to find any good resources for him online, but good luck

I love this house. Very beautiful.

Wow, I didn't read the beginning of the post, like who lives there. If you'd told it it was a single - possibly divorced woman - I'd have totally believed you.

Oh, but I do love that decorative painting in the guest room. White on orange, very cool.

Lots of charm, thanks for the viewing.

Wow, wow, wow! This home has so much personality! It's gorgeous. Thanks for inviting us inside.

this is one of the best house tours yet. gorgeous, cozy and LIVEABLE!

Amazing!!

This tour was so much fun to look at! Shows a lot of personality! You have made a lot of bold choices but it all works here. Definitely a wonderful place to be!

PS (The Screamer is lucky to grow up in such lovely surroundings.)

Delightfully whimsical. But all I could think of was the dust...so much 'stuff' and fabric.

idiotdogbrain, appreciate the lead to Rumi. you are right, hard to find. going to bookstore. again, what a great house.

I expected to read the comments and find this place skewered. It looks like a Martha Stewart flea market.

But at least they put their own individual stamp on it!

le bebe! i love the baby. the house is cute too.

I had so much fun with this house tour...thanks for sharing!!

i love love love your house :) the more i look the, the more i think you're my twin separated at birth :) i even have the same skirt, only in crazy blue

oh, "diy" means do it yourself or did it yourself :0) besides the baby, i think, your best diy is the walls, amazing job :)

I love, love, love the painted silhouettes in the photo with those great shadow boxes. Also, the orange wall with the white branches. Always interested in seeing a home belonging to people who like/use more than one specific period of decor; it makes it difficult to keep a cohesive, non-jarring look. Must have been hard to keep this place from getting out of hand. Bedroom with canopy a bit too girly for me. Adorable baby best accessory.

I love you.

Give me your house.

Whimsical, theatrical and charming. It works because it was inspired with good taste. Thanks for the tour. Four thumbs up.

Beautiful! I want to dive onto that bed with its gorgeous sheets.

The Rumi poem is:

I was nothing,
you made me greater
than a mountain.
I lagged behind,
you pushed me in front.
My heart was shattered,
you healed it.
I turned into a lover
of myself.