An inviting Cotswold house with gently layered interiors by Lucy Cunningham
There's something pleasingly Nancy Meyers-ish about the idea of decorating a house just for yourself, especially at that time of life when the children are grown up and a new chapter is about to start. That was the brief interior designer Lucy Cunningham took on for the owner of this house, who had lived in the Cotswolds for many years and was ready for something fresh. ‘This was the first house she was buying that was going to be totally hers,’ says Lucy. ‘We had this chance to make it something completely indulgent.’
Once a lodge for a larger estate, the 19th-century house is tucked away down a farm track in a perfectly bucolic Cotswold landscape, surrounded by a generous garden and with views out over the nearby hills. While the interiors had been neglected over years of the same occupant living there, there were no huge structural changes to make. Lucy's initial work therefore consisted of tweaks to make the most of the house's many advantages, ensuring it was as comfortable as it could be for her client. French doors were installed in the kitchen so that it now opens onto the courtyard garden outside, an awkward back extension was rationalised to make it feel more in sync with the rest of the house, and one of the six bedrooms became a luxurious dressing room.
The prevailing mood of the decoration was to be calm and restful. ‘My client is such a warm, gentle person,’ says Lucy, ‘and so it was really about making the house reflect her personality.’ This meant dialling back some of the studio's signature bold patterns, and embracing a quieter aesthetic. The colour palette is deliciously warm and soothing, with restrained yellows, pinks and sage greens enlivened by a few key statement patterns. The kitchen is a good example, where Edward Bulmer's soft ‘Lilac Pink’ on the cabinets plays gently with their ‘Drab Green’, a muted take on a classic country house colour combination.
As the project went on, more vibrant elements gradually made their way in, and have become much beloved by the client, such as the boot room through which people enter the house, with its rich brown paint on the joinery and sunny Soane Britain ‘Berlioz’ wallpaper. ‘We wanted that space to feel joyful and welcoming, but also dog and mud proof,’ laughs Lucy. ‘The owner has big dogs and they come back from long walks with muddy tails whacking everywhere – hence the brown paint!’ The clients' grown-up children became involved along the way, especially since each of them has their own bedroom for when they come to stay, and one daughter's bedroom was entirely decked out in Sarah Vanrenen's floral ‘Dotty Wide’ wallpaper, making for a perfectly pretty country bedroom.
While the house was designed as a reflection of the client herself and her personality, it also needed to be a place where her children felt comfortable and where she could host plenty of guests coming over. The farmhouse table in the kitchen was sourced with long, convivial suppers in mind, while the snug that leads off the kitchen has elegant new joinery designed to hold games and books for rainy days. Everything was completed in under a year, and Lucy looks back on the project as a delightful period of plain sailing. ‘The family are thrilled with it, which really makes the whole thing for me. When you have clients who are so lovely, you so badly want to make them happy.’ It's hard to imagine them feeling any other way in such a comfortable interior.
Christopher Horwood1/17The walls in the snug are painted in ‘Clove’ by Edward Bulmer, while a sofa in Octavia Dickinson's ‘Cassius’ stripe provides a focal point.
Christopher Horwood2/17The cushions in antique textiles, the lamps and the side table in the snug came from Caroline Marcq of CMDC Interiors.
Christopher Horwood3/17The boot room functions as the actual entrance to the house. The wallpaper is Soane's ‘Berlioz’ design in sunflower, and the joinery is painted in ‘Brown Betty’ by Atelier Ellis.
Christopher Horwood4/17A further part of the boot room has extra cabinetry painted in Edward Bulmer's ‘Lute’.
Christopher Horwood5/17The drawing room is a tranquil space with walls in Farrrow & Ball's ‘White Tie’.
Christopher Horwood6/17Looking out from the drawing room to the stairs.
Christopher Horwood7/17At the back of the house is a generous study with a vaulted ceiling. Walls in Edward Bulmer's ‘Tawny’ lend a warm backdrop to a collection of textiles.
Christopher Horwood8/17
Christopher Horwood9/17The downstairs loo is papered in Inchyra's ‘Somborne Stripe’.
Christopher Horwood10/17The main bedroom has a serene scheme, with walls in Atelier Ellis' ‘Solstice’.
Christopher Horwood11/17The adjoining bathroom.
Christopher Horwood12/17The curtains and blinds are in Nicole Fabre's ‘Chenonceau’.
Christopher Horwood13/17The son's bedroom is painted in ‘Sadhika’ by Atelier Ellis. Bookshelves were built in on either side of the bed in the alcoves left by a previously existing chimneybreast.
Christopher Horwood14/17One of the daughter's rooms is a pretty space papered in ‘Dotty Wide’ by Sarah Vanrenen.
Christopher Horwood15/17The other daughter's room has a quieter scheme, with Chelsea Textiles' ‘Sea Meadow’ paper on the walls.
Christopher Horwood16/17The girls' bathroom has woodwork painted in Edward Bulmer's ‘Vert de Mer’ and curtains in Nicole Fabre's ‘Avignon’.
Christopher Horwood17/17The striped shower tiles are just visible in the mirror. The back of the joinery is papered in Carlos Garcia's ‘Alba’.
