Meet The House Of The Year Nominees For 2026
For House & Garden South Africa’s Designer of the Year Awards, the House of the Year category celebrates residential projects where architecture, interiors, craftsmanship and everyday living come together. This year, three distinctive South African homes have been nominated for House of the Year: a layered Bishopscourt family home by Head Interiors, a calm and tactile Bedfordview residence by La Grange Interiors, and a colourful Constantia house designed by Marie-Louise Koen with architect Jaclyn Cattell.
A Bishopscourt Home Where Order Meets Edge
In Bishopscourt, Head Interiors created a newly built family home that draws on the architectural language of Cape Dutch revival and Victorian design while introducing a distinctly contemporary sensibility. Designer Abi Brodie was tasked with bringing together two contrasting personalities: one drawn to classic order and meticulous detail, the other to a more artistic and unconventional aesthetic. The resulting interiors find common ground through a considered palette, varied materials and carefully selected vintage pieces.
Texture plays a particularly important role. Checkerboard flooring, klompies, timber, rusted metal and sculptural lighting give the rooms depth, while the double-volume kitchen and living area provides the scale for stronger colour and pattern. Red and white kitchen tiles become a striking focal point, balanced by calmer surrounding finishes. Even the dining table was designed specifically for the home, with an oak veneer top echoing the lattice pattern of the flooring below.
A Bedfordview Family Home Designed For Calm
In Johannesburg, the Bedfordview nominee takes a quieter approach. Designed by Sumari Krige of La Grange Interiors for a family of four, the home was conceived as a sanctuary from busy professional lives. Mature trees surrounding the property provided the initial inspiration, with the interiors echoing their sense of shade, stillness and natural calm.
The design combines earthy rusts, blacks, wood, rattan, ceramics, glass and carefully chosen textiles. Rather than filling rooms with numerous small pieces, generous proportions and oversized furniture establish a feeling of balance. Lighting is another important layer, with sculptural pendants, floor lamps and wall sconces adding atmosphere as the day progresses. Throughout, the emphasis is on comfort without sacrificing sophistication.
Perhaps most successful is the way contrasting materials prevent the home from becoming too restrained. Plush velvet dining chairs sit against rough plastered brick, while raw metal lighting introduces an industrial note. In the main bedroom, a four-poster bed and patterned curtains help make the double-volume space feel intimate and cocooning. The result is a family home designed to feel lived in, rather than simply displayed.
A Constantia Home Where Colour Takes The Lead
The third House of the Year nominee is a Constantia residence by interior designer Marie-Louise Koen and architect Jaclyn Cattell, where South African craftsmanship meets European sophistication and Hamptons ease. The collaboration reworked the home's layout to improve its natural light, flow and connection between indoor and outdoor spaces.
Here, a restrained architectural foundation allows colour and art to take centre stage. Walnut herringbone flooring, black-and-white marble, natural stone and black steel-glass doors establish a cohesive backdrop, while furniture, textiles and artwork introduce richer tones. The home includes a striking blue study, a teal bar and bedrooms individually defined by blue, yellow, red and orange palettes.
Local design was also central to the project, with pieces by South African makers including Bofred, James Mudge and Curación incorporated throughout. The clients' substantial art collection further informed the interiors, with works by artists including Lionel Smit and Monique Koning helping establish the vibrant colour palette.
Together, these three residences demonstrate the breadth of this year's House of the Year nominees. From Bishopscourt's meeting of heritage and contemporary design, to Bedfordview's emphasis on calm, comfort and materiality, and Constantia's expressive combination of colour, art and local craftsmanship, each nominated home offers a distinctly different interpretation of considered South African residential design. One of these three homes will take the House of the Year title, but all three form part of the 2026 Designer of the Year Awards nominees celebrating exceptional homes and the designers behind them.
Credits
Images: Mickey Hoyle, Supplied, Inge Prins