It’s one of the busiest weeks on Cape Town’s summer calendar when I arrive at Véronique Savigné’s home. All over the city, restaurants are literally overflowing and the traffic is completely backed up, so it’s a welcome respite from the outside fluster to step into a space that has such a calm energy while being layered with character and comfort.
Having bought and renovated the house a few years ago, each room mirrors Véronique’s eye for design, her clever use of texture and textiles, and her passion for art and craftsmanship. It’s no wonder her 193k Instagram followers are so intrigued by her travels, innate style, and effortless ability to make her guests – in person and online – feel at home. “I’ve always taken photographs and kept a diary,” she says. “Those two things have allowed me to document my life, and I suppose my Instagram page became a way for me to express what I saw and loved,” she says. “My page is a visual escape where people can daydream a little, and I can focus more on the things that are soft and lovely in the world,” she continues.
It was at the Venice Biennale in 2016 that Véronique’s art collecting journey – and her online platform – began. Before long, she was documenting galleries, glamorous parties, and some of South Africa’s most beautiful homes – including her own. She also embraced and shared the people and things that interest her, whether it’s chatting to artisans at local markets, shopping for Anna Trzebinski kaftans in Kenya, or leading virtual house tours, some of which have received more than a million views. “A home is like a window into someone’s soul, and it is such a privilege to be let into people’s innermost sanctuaries”, she notes.
Born in Germany and raised in Johannesburg, Véronique studied languages and psychology – a subject she’s still passionate about. Having been a corporate wife for 22 years, she’s found her own path consulting on art collections and working mostly with international clients and decorators to source works from up-and-coming local artists. She also has a new fashion label in production – because her followers always ask her what she is wearing – and regularly hosts collectors’ art tours at her home, which is filled with extraordinary pieces, including William Kentridge’s Hold the Open Heart she bought for her 50th birthday.
As we walk through her home, it’s as if everything has spirit of place and personality that’s evolved organically over time. There are quirky ornaments she found while backpacking in her 20s through India, vintage kilims and ethnic throws draped over ottomans, antiques interspersed with bold artworks, a mix of velvet, ticking, linen and ikat, rietdak ceilings, and beautiful rugs. “My style is a collected look, it’s about collecting things not because they are fashionable, but because I love them. It’s so important to be who you are as your home is an expression of you – you are your own art project,” she says as I admire a table, which she tells me used to be in the potting shed of her previous home.
Véronique has made masterful use of the sitting areas around her home, which instantly make for easy and intimate entertaining all year: an open kitchen leads on to a glass-enclosed veranda that’s filled with large comfy couches and scatter cushions; an alfresco dining table sits under a vine-covered pergola that she and architect Craig Kaplan designed together; and then there is a central courtyard with a fishpond and a firepit that she calls the heart of her home. “Comfort is everything, and everything is comfortable in my house. Nothing is stiff – I use loose covers on my sofas so the dogs can jump on them. That is my definition of luxury – comfort, convenience, and easy flow in life, as well as structured and nourishing routines,” she adds.
While she entertains frequently and always has house guests to stay, she’s adamant that she is “the worst cook in the world” and works with caterers who have become friends, asking them to simply “surprise me” (oh, to be so laid-back).
We chat about her travel plans, which this year include trips to KwaZulu-Natal and Plettenberg Bay, London, Portugal, the south of France, and Italy, where she adores holidaying in Gargnano on the western shore of Lake Garda. Here, she stays at Villa La Guilia, not far from Villa Feltrinelli, a luxury home that was Mussolini’s summer escape between 1943 and 1945. “It’s so profoundly expensive that we can only go for tea,” she quips. “While I love collecting, you don’t have to travel overseas to do it – go to markets and junk shops and look at other people’s collections,” she reiterates. “Trust your taste as it comes together in the end.”
Entertaining Tips
- Be informal; I’ve moved away from old-school seated dinners and plated food
- Always have enough seating
- Soft lighting and good background music is essential
- Serve light, healthy, and abundant food that’s a visual feast and can be eaten in bowls
- Be yourself, be relaxed, and have fun because your guests can look after themselves
