A country house overlooking the South Downs with sophisticated interiors by Henri Fitzwilliam-Lay
Overlooking the South Downs, with only an Arcadian folly to mar its view, this handsome house was designed by architects TA Darcy Braddell and Humphrey Deane and built in 1936. It was described in 1942 by Christopher Hussey in Country Life magazine as a ‘Modern house in the Georgian manner’. Only two families had lived in the house before the present owners bought it as a home for themselves and their three young children five years ago.
Interior designer Henri Fitzwilliam-Lay was introduced to the couple by the property consultant RedBook Agency to work alongside Stedman Blower Architects on a huge overhaul and restoration of the house and its outbuildings where nothing was left untouched. On the ground floor rooms were rearranged and repurposed, creating an elegant enfilade. Upstairs all nine bedrooms now have their own bathroom.
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The brief for the interior was to create a family-friendly home that was not too stuffy, grown-up or ostentatious. In fact, the house looks almost as if it has been inherited from a very stylish relative who had an eclectic mix of furniture, acquired over many years, to which they have added their own pieces.
The original kitchen, now the dining room, had double doors that led to a covered flat-roofed area with two stone arches. Henri cannot remember whose idea it was, since it was so obvious that it should be done, but the kitchen was moved into this area, with two further arches added and each fitted with Crittall doors. A new pitched roof was added and smart floor tiles sourced from British company Artorius Faber were laid to match those in the hall. Henri had the wonderful, tall, cylindrical Swedish wood-burning stove installed and commissioned Plain English units, painted in vibrant ‘Apple Smiles’ gloss by Paint & Paper Library, and an island in Little Greene Paint & Paper’s ‘Lamp Black’.
Smart butler doors lead into the glamorous dining room, which has walls lined with red ‘Inca Vertical Stripe’ cotton fabric from Penny Morrison and a carpet from Luke Irwin. The owners were on holiday in Marrakech when they found the brass lanterns. They called Henri, who placed their measurements on the plans on her computer as they were bargaining, which, they say, made it feel as if she was shopping with them. The finished room is womb-like, with the dark walls and floor emphasised by new joinery, painted in a deep Bordeaux red custom mixed by Papers and Paints, which houses a snazzy brass drinks bar.
More double doors open onto the airy and light drawing room, which has four long windows and glass doors looking out over the garden. Walls painted in the warm, distinctive ‘Tribe’ from Paint & Paper Library are teamed with a Tim Page carpet, and the seating is grouped comfortably around an original chimney-piece. There is space for a card table from the owners’ previous home and green leather Soane chairs, which pick up splendidly on the colours of the stunning Seventies lacquered sideboard that Henri found on 1stDibs. ‘In every project, there is one piece that it pains me to part with and this cabinet was it,’ she is happy to admit. At the far end, another set of doors invites you into a small snug, where the eye is drawn by a huge vintage drinks poster that fortuitously fitted into the space above the sofa.
The house glories in a wonderfully light hall with a stunning staircase and Henri was eager to keep the space as simple as possible. She found a small sculptural table by Paolo Moschino to mirror the 3D painting by the Welsh artist Islwyn Watkins over the chimneypiece, and to this was added a simple apple-green two-seater chair from Howe London.
A major change upstairs was to turn the main bedroom into a self-contained unit with two bathrooms and two dressing rooms, achieved by also converting a smaller bedroom next door. As it is in the corner of the house, the main bedroom benefits from three generous windows, which lessen the somewhat sepulchral colouring of the raw silk wallpaper, dictated by the Claremont fabric used for the bed canopy and curtains. Henri found four ink drawings by Joaquín Ferrer from Sitor Senghor at Galerie Orbis Pictus in Paris, which she has used to brighten up the one windowless wall, hanging them over a stylish dressing table.
On the floor above the main bedrooms, there was an extremely wide corridor with various spare rooms leading off it. To turn these into an appealing galleried library, they came up with the idea of opening up the ceiling by halving the width of the corridor above, releasing light from its windows. The walls are covered in ‘D Rajput Fantasy’ paper by digital specialist Iksel Decorative Arts, with scenes of palm trees, tigers and elephants sweeping up the walls and around the stairs and the windows – surely an enticement to read for any child.
Downstairs, at the back of the house, the service rooms, boot rooms and laundries are now a series of functional yet sleek spaces with custom-coloured tiles by Mosaic del Sur running along the length of the interconnecting passage.
The result is that this house has been brought beautifully up to date. Everywhere you look, it is clear that this is a family house, and the rooms are spacious and fresh, contrasting with the view over the fields, which has remained unchanged from the house’s first inception. In fact, thanks to Henri, a visitor can well believe that her clients did indeed inherit this house from some relatives with very good taste.
Paul Massey1/13Sofas by Amy Somerville in a Claremont mohair and vintage armchairs re-covered in blue leather are arranged around an ottoman in Rose Uniacke’s ‘Heavy Weight Linen’. Walls in ‘Tribe’, a Paint & Paper Library archive colour, showcase the original columns painted in a marble effect by decorative artist Ian Harper.
Paul Massey2/13At the other end of the drawing room, Soane’s ‘Simplified Crillon’ chairs partner the card table and pick up on a lacquered sideboard found on 1stDibs. The artwork above is by Tom Hammick.
Paul Massey3/13At one end of the kitchen, a Matthew Cox table is teamed with painted wood dining chairs from Forget-Me-Knot Furniture. The vintage armchair covered in an eye-catching print provides an inviting place to relax beside the Swedish stove, supplied by Nick Hills of The Ceramic Stove Company. An array of plates from Villa Bologna Pottery adds decorative detail to the pale wall.
Paul Massey4/13Plain English units in Paint & Paper Library’s ‘Apple Smiles’ gloss are set off by the island painted in Little Greene’s ‘Lamp Black’ and finished with a stainless steel work surface. The ‘Lundy’ pendant lights are from The Urban Electric Co. Tiles from Artorius Faber were chosen as they resemble the original floor in the hallway.
Paul Massey5/13Walls lined with Penny Morrison’s red ‘Inca Vertical Stripe’ cotton set the tone for the scheme in the dining room, with joinery in a custom gloss from Paints and Papers and ‘The Boyd’ chairs in deep burgundy leather from Soane. They surround the bespoke dining table, with Moroccan lanterns above. Luke Irwin’s ‘Ikat 4’ rug adds pattern and texture.
Paul Massey6/13
Paul Massey7/13Phillip Jeffries’ ‘Amalfi Silk Como’ wallcovering in olivastro was chosen to complement the curtains and bed canopy in Claremont’s ‘Tree of Life’ cotton. A custom end-of-bed bench, which conceals a TV, stands on a Luke Irwin ‘Green Sari Silk Klimt’ rug.
Paul Massey8/13Woodwork in ‘Copper Beech’ by Paint & Paper Library tones with the Habibi wall tiles and the Breccia Pontificia marble surrounds for the bath and the basin from Romagno Marmi.
Paul Massey9/13Iksel Decorative Arts’ ‘D Rajput Fantasy’ wallpaper provides a vibrant backdrop for the staircase in Little Greene’s ‘Lamp Black’ and the pale built-in bookshelves. The rug is from Tim Page Carpets.
Paul Massey10/13Painted wall panels in Little Greene’s ‘Sunlight’ and curtains in Raoul Textiles’ ‘Bombay’ fabric add warmth and colour to this room on the cooler side of the house.
Paul Massey11/13Walls in ‘Setting Plaster’ by Farrow & Ball allow the brighter colours to sing in one of the children's rooms. The four-poster bed is painted in Little Greene’s ‘Canton’ blue and has a pelmet in fabric from Eva Sonaike, also used for the upholstered stool.
Paul Massey12/13Blue tiles from Waterworks and a bespoke mirror create a pleasing contrast with the woodwork in a custom-mixed orange from Papers and Paints.
Paul Massey13/13A portrait acquired by the owners hangs above a wall console found on Vinterior.
