From traditional Andalusian… to contemporary industrial chic

“We’re absolutely delighted with the result, it’s all worked out brilliantly!”

When Renate and Daan Kranenburg bought their 6-bedroom villa at Mijas Golf in 2014, “It was like an adventure. It was the first time we had bought a property overseas, so we didn’t quite know what to expect or how things would turn out. But we’ve lived in various different European countries, so the prospect of buying a house in Spain – and extensively remodelling it both inside and out – didn’t really faze us. It was exciting…”

Both originally from the Netherlands, but currently living in Brussels, Renate and Daan were looking for a large frontline golf property with the intention of renting it out for most of the year, while also using it themselves whenever they could get away.

“Friends of ours from back home recommended VIVA to us as they had bought an apartment in Fuengirola through them, and VIVA sales consultant Sean immediately got to work to find us the perfect property.

“Mijas Golf seemed to be an ideal choice, not only for the golf course itself, but also because it’s so close to the beach and mountains, is only a short drive from the airport and it’s great for families as there are so many attractions and amenities nearby.

The villa before refurbishment. “With its fantastic frontline golf location we could see the villa had enormous potential.”

“With its fantastic frontline golf location, as soon as we walked inside the house – although it had small windows which made it quite dark – we could see it had enormous potential. But it was going to need a huge amount of work to turn it into the fabulous property we envisaged it could be!”

Having made an offer the villa owners couldn’t refuse, Renate and Daan’s adventure was about to begin…

Estepona-based builders, Hezasa Construcciones and Puerto Banús-based interior designers, FOC Design were entrusted with the project that would see the 30-year-old property transformed from traditional Andalusian, to contemporary industrial chic. Walls were knocked down, full-height windows and over-sized doors opened up the entire house, blurring the line between inside and outside… and the pièce de résistance – the magnificent infinity pool seamlessly fusing the villa’s private garden with the lush greens and fairways beyond.

Renate with her two little boys Maurice and baby Daniel, and her mother Ineke.

“The refurbishment work started in January 2015,” Renate explains, and apart from a few details, everything was completed within just seven months. We learnt an awful lot during the process. There were regular meetings and Skype conference calls with Oscar Parejo from Hezasa and Hayley Reed from FOC Design because obviously good communication and co-ordination are absolutely vital. I was pregnant with Daniel at the time and flew over from Belgium every month to see how things were progressing. We did have one or two sleepless nights right at the very beginning, but our trust and confidence in our team grew with each visit I made and there were always new photos for me to send to Daan to keep him right up-to-date.

“Opening up the living space to let the natural light flood in has totally transformed the feel of the lounge, dining room and kitchen, while each of the six bedrooms – the property sleeps 12 – has unique accent colours and neutral homely tones chosen by Hayley. The contemporary interior design was achieved by using a transitional style with industrial design elements.

“Opening up the living space to let the natural light flood in has totally transformed the feel of the villa.”

“We’re absolutely delighted with the result and never imagined just how well it would all turn out. It was a big undertaking, in fact I think the only thing we haven’t changed is the antique front door! The villa – whose name is now Luz de Verano – is managed by Kevin Bravant of Greenside Properties who also handles the rentals. He used to manage it for the previous owners, too, and he reckons it’s now probably the best villa at Mijas Golf.

“It’s all worked out brilliantly!”