There’s always a sense of nostalgia attached to a place. In fact, it’s the one thing we love most about travelling. It gets triggered by sights and sounds you often don’t expect. &Kin – based at The Old Mushroom Farm in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands – is one such place that triggers nostalgia.
Whether it’s through hints of the past that get brought to light with furniture or décor pieces, or aromas that encourage time travel, fond family memories are literally mortared into &Kin. The newly launched event venue is located on the grounds of The Old Mushroom Farm.
Architect-owner Nick Crooks and his wife, Mandy recently shared the opening of the long-anticipated space with their children, friends from the area and some media. Crooks is famous for his high ceiling designs and with this project, his family formed an integral part of the planning, the journey and the naming of the space. &Kin refers to Crooks and his family – a mean team when it comes to being creative and thinking out of the box.
Finally, with views across the Midmar Dam, the event space is open to the public for all kinds of smaller (and preferably daytime) events. These include book launches, product launches, special occasions and more.
&Kin’s red brick building includes a large hall with longish tables and vintage-looking chairs that take you back to church bazaars and pancakes. In addition, the lighting plays an integral role in the space. It offers a dash of modernity amidst interiors that tend to leave you nostalgic. The &Kin event space can be made into almost anything. With a minimalist feel to it, it invites those who utilise the space to use their imaginations and wave their wands to turn it into whatever they’d like it to be.
Crooks had his mind set on a certain window style for the venue, which initially came with lots of challenges. In the end it had an intricate part in making the space what it is today, though. The black-paned, oval-shaped windows are surprisingly high and allow light to subtly glide into the space.
There is also the &Kin Boardroom – a second space next to the hall – which lends itself to more intimate gatherings and meetings. It comes with lovely vintage pressed ceilings and interesting windows that have been designed to stand out.
Furthermore, &Kin boasts a lovely apartment at the top. A set of stairs leads to a lovely, two-bedroom space overlooking the grounds of The Old Mushroom Farm and the Midmar Dam. The &Kin Loft is beautifully designed and decorated, with nostalgic hints evident everywhere. These come through in orange-coloured kitchen cabinets, vintage bedside lamps and mirror frames, unique handmade shower tiles, pastel green basins and more.
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