World-renowned coffee house chain EL&N (Eat, Live and Nourish), known for its OTT pink and floral decor, has opened its doors at the Mall of Africa in Joburg – and is already gaining traction for its Insta-worthy decor.

The fusion of a contemporary and innovative menu combined with a pinker-than-pink decor theme has made the new spot a must-visit for socialites and guests seeking an all-around visual and literal feast. The design of the space was a collaboration between their appointed architects and the EL&N in-house marketing team. “The architects paint a beautiful landscape in terms of direction and layout and our in-house Marketing team applies all the key ‘Instagrammable’ moments that you see across the store, from the pink blossom booth feature to the artwork and iconic neon slogans that dress the walls of the café,” explains Alexandra Miller, Founder of EL&N London. “We’ve been working with the same architects since the conception of EL&N so we are very fortunate that we have an extremely creative, collaborative relationship when it comes to store design and creating unique interior design moments.”

Every cafe designed around the world is created with a different brief, to make each experience new for globetrotters and international visitors. The stand-out feature of the Mall of Africa store is the “Tree of Light” bar feature. It’s the first thing that catches your attention as you enter the store, designed to create an impact. The entrance, dressed with pretty pink florals is intended for visitors to photograph. “The locals of South Africa are loving the touch of pink we have brought to Mall of Africa! Not forgetting to mention our very first pizza bar which allows for that element of theatre whilst dining in the café,” Alexandra elaborates.

The menu has been curated with South African palates in mind, with offerings such as steaks and grills alongside the brand’s first-ever pizza bar, which will offer a range of wood-fired pizzas.

Marketed as “The most Instagrammable café in the world” this theme translates through from the decor to the food. Every dish, drink and cake at EL&N is carefully curated to ensure that it’s not only packed with flavour but that it looks picture-perfect on the plate. As an example, most dishes and drinks with edible flowers, translate back to the florals used across the interiors of the cafés, making for an unforgettable experience from surroundings to menu consumption.

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SheBeen – a fantastically pink pop-up bar designed by Tristan du Plessis in collaboration with Brutal Fruit creates a safe women-only space in the heart of Soweto.

SheBeen, situated at the Rockerfella Tavern, is an exclusive pop-up that aims to provide a venue where women can socialise in a secure and unthreatening environment. The brief from the team at Brutal Fruit for Tristan was to create a safe, beautiful space for women to connect, socialise and, more importantly, to feel as though the area was created just for them. “The Shebeen is a speakeasy in the true sense of the word, the high-end space is hidden discreetly behind a typical corrugated iron facade, which adds a layer of secrecy as well as an added element of surprise for guests,” exclaims Tristan.

Blush pink tones nod to the popular drinks in the Brutal Fruit stable while playing to the tongue-in-cheek stereotype of pink being for “women”. “A stand-out design feature is the use of colour and lighting to create a unique and sumptuous environment,” explains Tristan. “We wanted the Shebeen to feel like it would be just as well suited in Sandton as it was in Soweto.”

MOOOI carpets, Kalki Ceramics and Mash T. Studio light fittings are some top local names that grace the sophisticated space, placing an emphasis on female-led makers and suppliers. “We wanted the space to be oozing with glamour and sophistication, we wanted the women that entered space, to feel as though they were seen and made to feel important,” Tristan continues. “All women deserve to feel this way and we were thrilled at the idea of creating this feeling through design.” 

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This eye-catching pizza spot on Cape Town’s Bree Street features blush-worthy decor and a name that pays homage to a hip-hop classic.

You definitely won’t miss the candy-floss pink exterior and bright neon signage of pizza eatery and cocktail bar I Love The Dough, which opened in October 2019. It’s the brainchild of Niki Reschke and partner Marco Picone of Arcade café on the same street, and the team wanted to bring a cheeky element to their decor, complemented with food to match.

“First off, my partner and I are by no means professionally trained designers,” says Niki. “Both of us are lovers of hip-hop and sitting around a table just laughing and being creative, Marco started singing Biggie Smalls’ I Love The Dough, looked at me and said, ’That could be a cool name for our place’ – and the rest is history.”

Featuring T-Rex skeleton wallpaper, sleek Bianco marble countertops and tables, turquoise barstools and leather quilted benches, the space has more than a few of the sort of design flourishes that make a restaurant interior pop.

Add neon signage and quotes scrawled graffiti-style on the walls – and even ceiling – and the interior ensures that your visual appetite is sated before you’ve even ordered your pizza.

I Love The Dough was never intended to look like a typical pizza joint, Niki says. “Our idea… was to create a space that shows off our attitude to life. It relaxes our customers’ eyes and lets them feel like they’re not in the traditional space with the same basic design, colour scheme and textures.

“We wanted the location to be a small, light space that combines a non-traditional design concept with our classic-style pizza, offsetting the past with a current – even futuristic – look and feel.” And they’ve done a pizza perfect job of it.

Follow @ilovethedoughct on Instagram.

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Durban beauty salon Annaesthetic schools us in colour-blocking while harking back to a luxe 1940s Miami Beach, echoing the city’s Art Deco accents and penchant for tropical kitsch.

It’s not often Carmen Kelly and Susie Hart of Durban design house Georgette Black get such a brief brief. “Make it pink!” was the call from beauty salon owner Annie Ludick. “Her brief was even in capital letters on the WhatsApp message!” says Carmen, who has been curating spaces in Durban for 15 years.

Annie and her partner, former ad executive-turned eventing guru Kgolo Mthembu, are creatives themselves. The salon, Annaesthetic, is an addition to their existing hub, where Annie also owns a sassy dance studio and Kgolo runs the popular rooftop bar Views at Twenty5, overlooking Moses Mabhida Stadium.

Annaesthetic’s design is the ultimate colour-block experiment, and Carmen layered multiple textures and soft hues to best showcase Annie’s favourite colour. “We also thought about what pink means,” says Carmen. “It’s a healing colour, in addition to suggesting love and self-love. Annie and Kgolo have a baby girl, so at the time we were all feeling the pink! We also looked to a bygone era of the beauty salon, when women would spend the entire day getting their hair set and their nails done.”

The location, with its views of Durban’s beachfront, prompted Carmen to use a glam, 1940s Miami, tropical aesthetic, bringing in the Art Deco landscape with subtle accents of gold and pockets of green. All furniture and fittings were custom-designed and built, utilising soft contours and comforting fabrics that invite you to stay a while. Oversized, shell-shaped velvet chairs at the pedicure stations evoke Alice In Wonderland awe, and tell the story of the pristine pearl that will inevitably emerge post-pamper…

For more information, visit facebook.com/annaestheticsa.

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The latest addition to The Poké Co’s list of restaurants is a trendy spot in the heart of Claremont, Cape Town, featuring soft, pink hues and a circular coffee hatch. 

When owner Andrew Flanagan briefed Jenine Bruce from Lacuna Interior Design Studio on the design of the new eatery, he knew he wanted an interior that embodied the youthful, bright nature of the brand and the food it makes.

The result is a space that is both calming and totally Instagrammable. “For the first time we introduced both brand colours,” Andrew elaborates. “The soft, sweet hues of pink and vibrant teal are an antidote to the stresses of modern-day life. The light and bright palette embodies the South Africa summer, reflecting the brand’s casual personality through the creation of a warm and inviting space.”

Stand-out features include the circular coffee hatch window, seating featuring artwork by Wonder Meyer, and terrazzo elements juxtaposed with matte black fittings and the rounded curves of the doorways. “With the design, music and layout we try to enable the customer to escape their busy days, unwind and be at ease in our spaces, leaving feeling re-energised,” says Andrew.

With intimate nooks and comfy seating, it’s the perfect spot for a healthy lunch or a coffee to go.

For more information, visit pokecoct.com or follow @pokeco_ct on Instagram.

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The seventh branch of The Webster, a multi-brand clothing and design boutique founded by Laure Hériard Dubreuil, is a pink concrete wonder designed by Sir David Adjaye of Adjaye Associates.

Located at the corner of Beverly and San Vicente Boulevards in Los Angeles, The Webster is Sir David’s first completed project in California and forms part of the iconic 40-year-old Beverly Center. Donning a striking curvilinear pink facade that is at once gentle and rough, Sir David’s reimagining of the existing space uses platonic and architectural forms to create vast opportunities for display – allowing Laure’s products to alter the store’s narrative as necessary.

Juxtaposed by the large eight-story structure that is the Beverly Hills Center, The Webster manages to assert itself with inarguable elegance by functioning as an experiential counterpoint that reimagines the brutalist shell of the existing building. The concrete’s colour, which is injected with pink dye, is an ode to the Pacific light of California and the manner in which it naturally amplifies saturated colours.

At the main entrance, a panoramic window comprised of three sheets of curved glass makes for an angular visual portal that blurs the boundary between public and retail space. The exterior identity continues within, featuring an experiment in material and colour.

See more Adjaye Associates projects here and read our Q&A with Sir David about Hallmark House, his first major project in Southern Africa.

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A west-facing Namibian lodge soaks up the best views of sunset drenched dunes – and lends a touch of whimsy to the brutal landscape.

Flanking the central main building, 20 spacious west-facing double rooms and four family units boast small private splash pools. The curved roofs emulate the undulating dunes.

It’s like Wes Anderson meets Retro Miami film set in the heart of the desert: a 24-suite boutique on the border of the Namib Naukluft National Park that’s punctuated with unexpected shades of pink. Undeniably cheeky it may be, but Desert Grace – the latest addition to the Gondwana Collection suite of offerings – doesn’t scrimp on comfort or ignore eco-sensitivities. Bags filled with Namib desert sand were used to build the exterior walls, while the walkways that snake out from the central entrance/bar/dining hub were created from a mix of concrete and recycled glass.

Inside, think terrazzo tiles, neon signs, pink umbrella stands, popcorn, pink drinks and feathers in varying shades of rose to acid pink. The message is clear: this sliver of Hollywood glamour takes itself seriously when it comes to ensuring guests have a playful desert experience.

“When we were choosing the colour palette, we drew inspiration from the surrounding minerals – such as rose quartz and agate – and the colour of the dunes at sunset,” says Chris Browne, co-founder of Fox Browne Creative, who designed the interiors. “The buildings, with their tensile shade cloths, are essentially simple structures, and provided a clean slate for our vision.” The bar is definitely the hero of the main buildings, and its backlit stained-glass counters feature animals found in the area, including ostrich, gemsbok and jackal. “At night these counters glow, giving the room a lovely homely feel and encouraging lots of socialising.”

Walvis Bay photographer Megan Dreyer was commissioned to take the images that adorn the bedroom walls.

To minimise light pollution, the Fox Browne design team relied on very few focused downlighters. “We only have two decorative pendant feature lights in the entire lodge,” Chris explains. “However, the retro neon bar sign casts a gentle pink glow across the communal areas, tempting guests to make the most of ‘one night in Namibia’.”

In the generous guest suites, complete with private splash pools, floor-to-ceiling doors celebrate the vibrant vistas beyond. Window dressings mimic lavish stage curtains that guests have to draw closed with a flourish against the night-time desert chill.

Chris says the little tented changing room in the arrival/reception/shop building is the ultimate nod to American film writer-director Wes Anderson, known for his idiosyncratic visual style. “It anchors the room – but it also inspires all sorts of extrovert guest behaviour!” Just a dusty 50km trip away from one of the country’s most famous landmarks, Sossusvlei, Desert Grace is a winsome space. As you check in, you’re hard-pressed not to check your worldly troubles at the door. Pink gin, anyone?

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From a pink pizza spot in London and a new 10-storey mural in Cape Town to locally woven serviettes and fun ceramics, these are top VISI picks of the week series – week 289.

1. Humble Pizza by Child Studio

Child Studio transformed the interiors of Humble, a plant-based pizza eatery, into a wall-to-wall pink café in London’s Chelsea, inspired by London’s Formica cafés of the 1950s. Mosaic tiled flooring, cherry wood detailing and neon signs were also used within the space.

Images courtesy of Alexey Kostikov and Chieh Huang / childstudio.co

2. Mungo’s New Selvedge Serviette Range

Local textile brand Mungo has released a new pure linen serviette range, each one of which has been individually woven on restored shuttle looms at the Mungo Mill in Plettenberg Bay. The design was actually inspired by a family holiday, where doing laundry was not at the top of anyone’s minds and serviettes were reused in the evenings. “By giving each family member their colour for the week, no confusion could arise over which serviette belonged to whom,” explains the team.

Images courtesy of Mungo

3. New Lighthouse Mural

A 10-storey mural can now be viewed on the facade of a building in Strand Street, Cape Town. The mural, commissioned by Boxwood Property Fund in association with local NPO Baz-Art, was created by Ukrainian street artist Aleksandr Nikituik. It took six days to complete.

Images: Melissa Cucci / Baz-Art

4. Rami Kim’s Whimsical Ceramics

Los Angeles-based Rami Kim, an artist and award-winning animator, has made a range of functional ceramic objects featuring little 3D faces. She hopes to eventually create a series of short animated films featuring the characters she creates.

Images via thisiscolossal.com

5. HIVE booth

Angelshack’s semi-enclosed HIVE booth offers noise reduction solutions and a degree of privacy for those looking for a place to take a breather in open-plan workspaces.

Images courtesy of angelshack.co.za

Browse more like VISI picks of the week series – week 289 on picks of the week 52.

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Pretty pastel shades of blue, yellow, mint green and pink come together in this list of 10 buys for you and your home, from stylish sunglasses and fun cushions for kids to juicers and notebooks.

1. Issy Knit Cushion R449, Country Road

2. Tawulo Bath Sheet R655, Mungo

3. Cat-eye Sunglasses R79, Style Republic at Spree

4. Pastel Stripe Rug R1 499, Superbalist.com

5. Duralex Picardie Pastel Tumbler (220ml, set of 6) R399, Superbalist.com

6. Abstract Lines Pouch R90, Pleekō

7. Smeg Citrus Press R2 218.30, Banks Kitchen Boutique

8. Lighthouse & Puffin Notebook R85, Feat. Sock Co.

9. Sorbet Set of 4 Side Bowls R690, Le Creuset

10. A6 Soft Cover Buffalo Journal R99.99, Typo

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From a pastel pink showroom in Seoul and a primary school in Vietnam to a colourful mural in Brooklyn, these are the top VISI picks of the week series – week 234.

1. Chuon Chuon Kim 2 Kindergarten Project

This kindergarten, located in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City, was designed by architecture firm KIENTRUC O,” says Online Editor Lindi Brownell Meiring. “The architects compare their design to a giant LEGO building with classrooms organized around a playful core. I love everything about it.”

Image credit: Hiroyuki Oki via archdaily.com

2. A Whimsical Wander’s Seoul Showroom

“This showroom in Seoul’s Cheongdam-Dong was designed by New York-based studio Nooyoon for high-end fashion label A Whimsical Wander,” says Content Producer Mary Garner. “The millennial pink colour palette is a true visual treat.”

Image credit: Suman Chun via designboom.com

3. Camille Walala’s Largest Mural

“Commissioned by WantedDesign for the Industry City Design Festival, artist Camille Walala added her colourful touch to a historic South Brooklyn building, her largest mural to date,” says Art Director Lené Roux. “I love how the use of colour makes the windows pop.”

Image credit: Industry City via designboom.com

4. Recycled Polystyrene Stools by Andreu Carulla

“Spanish designer Andreu Carulla has turned plastic waste into modernist hexagonal stools, known as RR201, for zero-waste Michelin-starred restaurant El Celler de Can Roca,” says Managing Editor Samantha Charles. “The stools are made from the polystyrene boxes used at the restaurant. So clever!”

Image credit: dezeen.com

5. Vida e Caffè X Russell Hobbs Galaxia Coffee Machine

“This little Vida e Caffè coffee pod machine was created in a collaboration with Russell Hobbs,” says Assistant Editor Tracy Greenwood. “Along with the machine, you can also buy Vida e Caffè pods in a range of flavours, from the brand’s house blend to delicious malt and caramel.”

Image credit: vidaecaffe.com

Browse more like VISI picks of the week series – week 234 on picks of the week 100. 

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