Under the Nigerian sun

You’ve seen Under the Tuscan Sun, right? You know, the one where a North American woman finds herself visiting Tuscany and decides to buy a property, then the hilarity of house fixing in a foreign land ensues. Yeah, that’s me right now, but in Lagos, Nigeria.

Let’s back this up. When I first met Chuck he talked about having a place back in his home country of Nigeria when he starts to reach retirement. He has a large family there, and, you know, there’s sun all year and not six months of winter like Winnipeg.

I was skeptical at first. For one, I had never been to Nigeria, let alone Africa at that point. And another, it’s sooooo faaaaaar away. And, let’s be honest, the news we hear from this part of the world back in Canada is not the greatest.

And that’s why I was like a hard “maybe?” I understood why he would want to come back here because he’s connected to so many people. But me? I knew no one here. I knew nothing about this place. I had only heard the worst of the worst. And there’s that whole thing that approximately 30 million people live in Lagos. Like, that’s a lot, right? Like, “oh yeah, let’s set up our relaxing retirement home in a city of millions instead of in the city we live that can hardly boast a mill.” Crazy. That’s what I thought.

But still, I was open.

I told him many a time, “I don’t think I can make a decision to live in a place without ever having, you know, been to it.” I said if I go and like it, then I’d be down. If I go and don’t, then it’s a no. He would still go every year for a short visit, but I would stay home. Not ideal, but also not the worst option.

Then I went to Lagos in 2021 and after getting over the culture shock, which was (omg!) extreme, I started to fall madly for the place. By the time we left four weeks later, we had a parcel of land in a secured estate in our back pocket and an idea of how we wanted to build our Naija home.

First, it had to have a few bedrooms for family. We did four total. Most houses in our estate have like eight to 10 bedrooms. Seriously!

Second, it had to be open concept, especially the kitchen, which is usually a small insanely hot room in most homes here. I wanted to make sure ours was open so I could move from the kitchen to the dining area to the living room with ease.

Third, our main bedroom had to be on the main floor. I have no interest in going upstairs unless I absolutely need to. Everything Chuck and I need to do on a daily basis should be on one floor and it should be on the main floor.

Pretty simple plan, right? Well not for our contractor/architect (I say those terms loosely). Every design we sent to him he would send back with the worst changes. He kept putting the main bedroom on the second floor, kept putting walls and doors around our kitchen, made our pool too short, changed the original size of our guest bathrooms (tiny compared to the room size). Kept telling us how what we want is not normal. Eventually we had to fire him because he just refused to listen to what we wanted and kept building what he thought we should have.

To say the building process was an ordeal is an understatement. Our biggest problem was that most of the build was done while we were in Canada. We have since learned that that was our biggest mistake. HUGE. It’s hard to see how some things are not being done well when you just have a grainy photo to go on. But we soldiered on and kept sending updates back and forth seeing what looked like good progress happening.

Then we were at the end of a trip in Tanzania in 2022, about six days from leaving to Nigeria and finishing the house, when we saw photos come in from the kitchen builders using not even close to the right cabinet materials.

That was it. The straw that finally broke the camel’s back. We cut our trip short and found a flight to Lagos the next day.

What we arrived to was absolute chaos. There were so many people working on site — and after one day watching them work — they were all pretty much fired. It was a gong show. That contractor/architect we hired was literally hiding from us. His aunty, who he put in charge of a lot of things, was just pilfering our materials and hiring unskilled workers to work on things like electricity and plumbing. You know, important things that are in walls you would prefer not to break to fix. Oh well. I learned very quickly how easy it is to rip apart a cement wall, fix an issue and repair it so you don’t even notice. It’s impressive, actually.

Because our contractor was such a dud and we had only four weeks until we had to go back to Canada, we worked night and day to get new workers in place and begin to right a sinking ship. And when I say we, I mean mostly Chuck. He was on the phone non-stop trying to find skilled builders and get them in quickly. He was literally that person on the sinking boat trying to plug all the holes with their fingers and toes. Every time a hole got plugged, another one would open up. I gotta tell you, that boat was teetering on the brink quite a few times.

I was the one with the hand-drawn detailed room plans. Probably my most useful contribution because I spent months drawing every room’s millwork in 3D down to the inches (and millimetres as that’s the standard here). My Google Calculations converter was working overtime! The plans were a lifesaver. Our *new* kitchen builders followed them to a tee and my papers were all over the place being passed around for help. They were so popular that all the papers mysteriously disappeared a few days before everything was finished.

We were on site every day for at least 10 hours. In 34 degree heat with no respite. By the end of the day we were totally spent. We would drive back to our hotel and shower and lay comatose in A/C for a half hour before going to the hotel lounge to listen to DJ Ceeprince and eat some dinner and drink very cold beer. Those moments in the lounge I think saved us from becoming completely defeated and miserable. We would end the day with great music and enjoy the company of all the folks at the hotel that night.

After three-and-a-half weeks we had the place in good enough shape that we could leave the hotel and move in. There was still so much to do, but we only had days left in Nigeria and we didn’t want to leave without experiencing what life would be like living here.

And we quickly found out it was heavenly.

Are there places in the house that are crooked? Yep. Did we run through about six plumbers before finding one that knew his shit? Also yes. Did a lot of things get royally screwed up? You don’t even know the half of it. But you know what we also discovered? We adore this place. It makes us so happy.

So cut to this year, 2024, and we are back in Lagos, have been since November 2023, and I’m in my OPEN kitchen baking stuff for our current workers (painters at this point) as I’m trying to figure out how to cook with a gas oven. I see that Under the Tuscan Sun is on Netflix so I put on the Diane Lane classic. And as I watch her living in renovation hell, I can’t help but think how similar our experience has been. Like Diane, we, or at least I, went blindly into building a house in Lagos with all the romantic thinking of picturing living a life on the other side of the world, without the insight of how absolutely hard that could be. I laugh even harder now at all the draining parts of her build, nod even harder when she wants to give it all up. And cry like a baby when it’s finally finished and that wall tap finally starts bursting with water. Running full-force from a nightmare into a dream.

Now, I couldn’t love this place more. It’s what we envisioned, but better. A huge part of that is because Chuck has this extreme tenacity to get things done quickly and done well. He’s the true hero of this story. And I’m glad he took me to this place and had the patience to let me discover it for myself and learn to love it on my own as much as he does. And some days more, because Nigeria wouldn’t be Nigeria without a healthy dose of issues that make you shake your fist at it like an ‘old man yelling at clouds‘.

“Challenges Ahead” may be written on the street signs here but it is also a metaphor for this chaotic place. But in the end, it was worth every hair-pulling, meltdown moment. Here is a look at our home:

Welcome to Ibezimako Villa!

This is our winter getaway home in Mayfair Gardens Estate in Lekki, Lagos.

Chuck envisioned lions to welcome you at the gate. I thought “sure, sounds great!” Some random stone garden ones would do the trick. But no, he wanted something different. After discussions with a few sculptors fell through, a delivery boy came to drop off a package one day and started asking Chuck if he needed any art done as he was also an artist. Next thing I know, there are two boys sculpting lions in the front. Ok. lol

They started with wire, small rocks and some weird long blond hair stuff and a few weeks later we had two lions. They’re not quite what Chuck envisioned, but after watching these boys put everything they had in the hot sun day after day to make them, we couldn’t resist absolutely adoring these — not so ferocious — lion security guards. They are the talk of the street and most who visit us want pictures with them… young and old!

The sunsets here are gorgeous. Sometimes the sky is gold, sometimes it’s purple.

The open living space

I’ve never lived in an open living space where I could be in the kitchen and still be a part of the action. So, that was number one for us on our build. That, and no ceiling above the living room and an open stair case. We feel it makes the space look grand.

This area was super echoey at first, but once we hung curtains and artwork, added loads of wood furniture and cushions, the sound is perfect. I thought I would also need rugs, but we really don’t. (And it’s hard to find a vacuum here and cold tile floors are better than a warm rug anyways.)

Now, the colour tones of wood are all over the place in here. We got ash, mahogany, ebony and walnut. It originally wasn’t meant to be like that, but this is Lagos and what you get sometimes is a crapshoot. But it all seems to work.

I adore this kitchen. Its design has made me actually like working in it. There’s so much space to move around in it. We also set the counters a bit higher than average and followed the “kitchen work triangle” layout. It makes cooking and baking so much easier. I’m baking now!?

The bar area was Chuck’s baby. He picked out a super funky cement/wood tile to use for the backsplash. But once it was up, we thought there wasn’t enough dramatic effect from the tile, so we ordered more and did the whole wall the bar is against. It’s not a huge wall, but boy does it make a statement now.

And then there’s the art. We wanted this house to be of this place. Of Nigeria. That meant no imports. Instead, we would employ local furniture builders to build most of our furniture. And we would decorate the house with pieces that are created here in Nigeria or other places in Africa.

I was starting to think that might be a struggle as I hadn’t come across any markets selling what we were looking for. Then my friend Nicole told me about the Lekki Arts & Crafts Market. I wasn’t super hopeful before we visited it as I just wasn’t seeing the kind of art I wanted anywhere. But the minute I got into the market I was like a kid in a candy store. So many amazing pieces of art and lots of vintage artifacts. So much of everything. And if the artist doesn’t have what you want, they will make it for you. Sometimes on the spot.

Those giant discs we have hanging on the wall above the kitchen are vintage Bwa Bobo sun masks from Burkina Faso. Nicole pointed them out to me as we were going through the market and we immediately knew they would be perfect for that spot. And you know they are perfect because whenever someone new visits and walks into the space and looks up they utter a stunned “wow.” That never gets old.

According to the Bobo, the sun mask protects the family and the village against evil spirits and promotes marriage and fertility.

I also found two large paintings that I immediately fell in love with. And you really have to look at a lot of paintings at that market, there are thousands upon thousands. It’s tiring. But then I saw one of a person paddling a boat at sunset in Makoko, the floating settlement in Lagos. Instantly I knew that was the one. I loved the colours, but what I loved more was the way it was painted in pointillism. But not just basic dots, the artist also used tiny indigenous symbols as their “dots.” As someone who loves and also dabbles in pointillism, I was instantly obsessed. And as we were purchasing that one, I saw another piece by the same artist, Bolaji Mudashiru, of locals at the market after the rain with those iconic yellow kekes parked in a row. I’ve witnessed that scene in person many times, so it made sense to get that one too.

The main bedroom

Our main bedroom is a study in warm tones and crazy patterns. We had a fellow who knows Chuck’s brother build furniture for all the bedrooms. I gave him a photo of a leather upholstered bed frame and he did a pretty great job on it. The curtain fabric was picked out via a video call. It’s not quite what I was looking for, but we painted the walls a deeper colour (they were white) and the bold curtains seem to blend in much nicer now.

I think the deeper wall colour also makes the room look a lot more cozier.

That standing mirror is another great find from the Lekki Arts & Crafts market. It’s a thing of beauty. It was carved by Samuel Adenegan (Big Sam), who we have bought a few items from now. The man is a very talented artist.

Our cabinet makers did a fantastic job in taking our intense paper drawings of the walk-in closet and building it and making it all fit together. There are no doors on the closet. It’s just an open space off the side of the bedroom. And as usual, Chuck’s hats are encroaching on my side.

The ensuite

Our ensuite was one of the biggest messes of the build. They didn’t get enough tile, so we had to find something comparable to work in the shower area. The vanity lights were originally put in wrong, so we then had to pull all that tile off that side of the wall and retile it. The floor pattern is, well, a pattern of inconsistency. They put the sinks in off centre from the mirrors/lighting. Just a comedy of errors.

But you know what, I just love the space. It’s quirky af but it works. And honestly, I never thought it would end up looking this good.

The laundry room and pantry

The room with the amazing peacock curtains. Another goal for this house was to use local Ankara fabric for all the curtains, bedding, chair cushions and patio upholstery. Chuck and I ventured to Balogun Market one morning and wove our way through all the small alleys off the main street to pick out fabrics for each room. Chuck spotted this peacock pattern and said it would be perfect for the laundry. He was absolutely right. So cheerful.

One side of our laundry room is dedicated to our intense solar power system. Electricity is mostly unreliable in Nigeria, and that’s where the sun comes in. I mean, there’s an abundance of sun here. It’s much nicer to have quiet power from the sun than run the generator.

As for the pantry, the laundry opens right on to it and then you can flow right through to the kitchen. One side is for storage of linens, pool accessories, cleaning supplies, and tools. The other side is for food, drinks and small appliances.

We had five extra tiles left over from the bar area (they are big tiles), so we just added them as a backsplash here instead of leaving them to pick up dust in the outdoor shed for years like all extra tiles seem to do.

The guest bathroom

This room is much tinier than it was supposed to be, but it does the trick. Love the zellige wall tile in that teal colour. It looks amazing as the backdrop to a mirror we found at the Lekki art market that’s made with vintage hair picks.

The guest lounge and suites

We know the travel is far and Nigeria isn’t quite a “tourism” country, but if you want to visit Lagos or us, we will welcome you. You’ll get a whole floor to yourselves:

The guest lounge

This is where we send the kids. lol!

We have board games, cards and books up there and access to YouTube and Netflix. It’s the perfect place for the kids to chill after a swim. We had extra mahogany wood left over from the stairs build so we had the carpenter use it to add shelves around and under the tv.

The pink room

The largest guest bedroom, which has my favourite fabric for the curtains. I loved the pattern so much I got a dress made out of it. lol

The green room

A study in circles.

The blue room

Cheerful, like a bright sunny day.

Relax in the back

Our goal was to make the hot, hot, hot temperatures of Nigeria feel not so hot. There’s a pool to cool off in and it’s surrounded by a garden full of the most beautiful palms, flowers and tropical plants. We want to make it feel like you’re at a resort. And the warm salty ocean breeze that flies into our yard every day from the Atlantic is an added bonus. Late afternoon is heaven back there. (Dinner always seems to be very late as we can’t help but stay outside as long as possible.)

We also built a cozy pergola off the house to relax in the shade. It’s not quite shaded enough yet, but once the colourful bougainvillaea begins to grow up the beams and over the roof, it should bring even more relief from the sun.

The Garden

This garden is pure happiness. I find myself staring at it for hours on a daily basis. It grows so fast that every day brings a surprise. One surprise is how many lizards call this place home. And I’ve been here long enough now to see how much of a soap opera their lives are.

We originally had the amazing Innovative Gardens come up with the concept and do the initial planting in 2022. Now we just see where it takes us as it grows.

Most late afternoons you’ll find us in the pool debating who wins “plant of the day,” where we decide which plant is performing above and beyond on that particular day. Yes, we are nerds.

And here’s our compound at night. With Chuck’s jazz playing in the background.

That’s our Lagos home. Feel free to tell me what you think in the comments. 🙂

See more of the art here.