Over her 35-year career, supermodel and new mother Naomi Campbell has shattered borders, stormed catwalks, and graced magazine covers.
She works hard and enjoys it, despite her busy schedule.
Even icons need rest. When she needs to disengage, Campbell visits her villa in Malindi, a tranquil Kenyan beach town.
For almost 20 years, she has utilized her gorgeous Indian Ocean-view property as her main escape from the hustle and bustle of New York City and London. The ideal indoor-outdoor living space.
This large area is furnished in warm earth tones and natural light to evoke informal opulence. She commented, “It’s a very calming place.”
Phone calls should be avoided. Are you not looking for a TV? You just want to read to relax. Crickets and silence are comforting.
Visit the saltwater pool outside her living room for a quick morning dip. Family-style dinners are perfect at the model’s entertaining tables under twin voile-curtained pergolas.
Campbell was struck by the makuti thatched roof and massive sun-dried coconut palm leaf cathedral ceilings.
Makuti roofs, hand-stitched using a sophisticated layering process, have been used in East Africa for thousands of years, she claims.
She brag that we’ve had this one for 12 years and it’s still good.The author commented, “Things can degrade very quickly here due to the air, wind, and sea salt, yet it has held up so well and is practically a work of art in and of itself.”
Large, bright Moroccan and Egyptian latika lamps swing from the rafters. Campbell enjoys furniture shopping across Africa, but Marrakech and Cairo are her favorites.
Campbell can locate quality woodwork nearby. “A lot of the wood furniture in the house is made in Malindi,” she says. It was a workshop in the backyard.