Relief From The African Sun With Shade Sails

Being outdoors with family and friends around a fire is a true South African tradition – if you have just a single drop of South African blood running through your veins, hanging out around the fire and braaing will form an integral part of your life. This however comes with the risk of blistering under the harsh African sun, especially when you are not fortunate enough to have inherited hardy South African skin.

There is no doubt that being covered up in summer is not a favourite amongst the local masses, shorts, t-shirts and flip-flops are the way to go. Therefore something smart and effective is necessary to ensure that the outdoor feeling isn’t lost, and that there is sufficient shade to create relief from the African sun.

Braai (derived from Afrikaans, proudly South African):

(noun) short for braaivleis

(verb) grilling meat over an open fire

Shade

We at Creative Living care for the avid braai enthusiast, whether expert or novice, which is why we have the perfect solution that fits this requirement like a glove. We offer an extensive range of Shade Sails to meet your specific needs and space, be it your braai area, or your coffee nook for your daily morning brew and rusk.

The Extreme Shade Sail Range offers a semi-permanent to permanent set up. The range comprises of the compact 2m x 3m and slightly larger 5m x 3m Rectangle Shade Sail for an area like your patio for an early morning coffee, the Right Angle Triangle Shade Sail for a stylish corner coffee nook and the Square Shade Sail in both 3.6m and 5.4m for the swimming pool area where you can cool off and still be offered the much needed protection. There is also a Triangle Shade Sail in both 3.6m and 5m to offer protection over the more irregular shaped entertainment areas where some sun may be an option.

The Ready Shade Sail Range offers a temporary set up, comprising of a rectangular option (2m x 3m), a square option (3.6m) and triangular option (3.6m).

All options are thankfully accompanied by an easy to understand, video instruction for self-installation (for those who don’t like asking for directions).

Our top 10 braai tips:

• For tender and juicy flavoursome steak, marinade the meat the night before.
• For a juicy piece of meat, allow one side to seal properly before turning over.
• Room temperature meat is better tasting than cold meat straight onto the fire.
• For a yummy traditional side dish, slice potatoes open with a criss-cross, leaving the skin on. Fill the cut with butter, parsley and crushed garlic, wrap in foil and place between your coals for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Pinecones are a great alternative to fire lighters.
• Your fire is ready when you are able to hold your hand over the coals for 5-10 seconds.
• Using a half lemon is an easy earth friendly way to clean your braai grid.
• Add a handful of fresh herbs to the coals to enhance the flavour of the meat when cooking.
• You can use a rosemary bunch to baste the meat rather than a basting brush, this adds great flavour.
• Very hot coals are best for braaing a juicy rare steak.