Meet the makers of our recycled Beach Hut Christmas trees, Anthony Cockcroft and Shafiek Solomons.
This hands-on team is proud to be part of the Save the Beach Hut campaign since 2020 to restore the legacy of these iconic huts. Anthony and Shafiek reflect on how these huts have been part of their lives since childhood when they visited the beach with their families: “These huts are to Muizenberg like Table Mountain is to Cape Town”.
The idea to recycle the reclaimed Beach Hut wood was born about six months ago when Beach Hut Founder, Angela Gorman, and Anthony met and exchanged ideas about other carpenting projects. After some inspiration, the team decided on recycled Christmas trees as a festive season collaboration with proceeds from tree sales in support of The Beach Hut Trust.
As keen supporters of the campaign, this project has not only created jobs for these locals but provided the joy of creativity. Each tree is unique and takes about 1-2 hours to make, depending on the number of nails, screws, bolts and sometimes chewing gum to remove from the planks. The cracked planks then need to be glued and clamped together overnight. Some of the wood is so old, it’s fluffy and only kept together by 3-4 layers of paint!
Anthony Cockcroft
Anthony lives in Diepriver and is originally from the East Rand in Joburg. He started his own business, CratesNThings, nine years ago, making wooden products for clients but specialises in wine crates and custom wine racks. “Customers would ask me to make up other items that they had seen on the web. My answer is always, if it’s made of wood, and you can draw it or send me a picture, then I can make it,” added Anthony.
Shafiek Solomons
Shafiek is proud to be part of the Save the Beach Huts campaign for the last two years after losing his job due to the Covid pandemic. “I’m excited about the transformation and look forward to seeing the new Beach Huts. Shafiek now runs his own small business, Solomon and Sons specialising in waterproofing, renovating, maintenance and painting.
These trendy trees, made from 100% recycled Beach hut wood, are available in different sizes, some with LED lights and are robust enough to brighten your patio or garden!
Prices vary from R250 – R950. Get yours by ordering at angela@beachhuts.org.za or at the Steenberg Estate music concert with Craig Hinds on 20 November.