Rita Konig brings ease and warmth to a sprawling 19th-century country house
Deep in the countryside of northwestern England, in a place where rolling fields and vast skies give way to the Welsh hills, is a red brick house. Built in the 19th century in the local vernacular, it looks from the front, according to its interior designer Rita Konig, ‘like a perfect little biscuit tin’, surrounded by farm buildings. Its owners – a couple with three young children – like to host and entertain on a grand scale, but also wanted the elasticity of a home that would not feel too large and empty when their friends have left and it is just the five of them.
This is a clever sort of house. One in which the size of the property – which is substantial – is tempered, not just by the architecture and the layout of the rooms, but also by Rita’s genius for making grand spaces feel cosy and cosy spaces feel grand.
The house unfolds backwards. Viewed from the side, the biscuit tin looks almost like a mews. What is essentially a new wing has been designed by Donald Insall Associates, connecting an old extension to a new one, with what the architect describes as a glazed ‘driftway’ in between. Though, from the outside, the newer elements have been executed with sympathy for the original building, on the inside, this entrance creates a moment of serious architectural drama, with its double-height plate-glass windows, contemporary staircase and floor in black sandstone tiles from Lapicida.
On the walls, Rita has used what she describes as ‘an old-fashioned tobacco colour’, created specifically for the space by Edward Bulmer Natural Paint (it has subsequently been added to the company’s colour card as ‘Trumpington’). ‘I wanted something that was neutral and earthy but smart,’ she explains. ‘I was trying to come up with a colour that unifies. When I was younger, I used a lot of dirty pale blue for that purpose but, in this house, it seemed too childish.’
The grand new entrance reorientates the property towards the courtyard and its barns, which have been converted into spaces for relaxation, entertaining and work. There is a huge party barn, split into three parts – one for dining and two for sitting and, occasionally, dancing – with doors that open onto a swimming pool. There is a vast games room with a billiard table; an office; a staff kitchen; and a proliferation of bedrooms including plenty for guests (10 in total). ‘Because all these rooms are separate, when there aren’t 20 people staying, it can still feel like a small house,’ says Rita.
The interiors are characterised by an assemblage of furniture and art handed down from family members, alongside new pieces sourced by Rita. Finding the thread that connects the homes of the owners’ childhoods with their current life is a running theme. The look is Rita’s brand of relaxed country, shot through with nods to the great country-house decorators of the 1970s and 1980s. John Stefanidis was decorator to the owner’s mother and advised them before Rita came on board. She has paid tribute to his contribution by lining the hallway that leads to the drawing room in one of his fabric designs – and carrying the pattern through into the drawing room by upholstering a sofa and trimming the curtains in the same print. Adjacent to the sofa are his drum tables, which Rita describes as ‘brass clouds’.
Then there is the dining room, with walls in a velvet by George Spencer Designs and a geometric Vanderhurd rug, which has a David Hicks feel. ‘The fun thing about the client was that she was a great mix of interested and uninterested, as she had real trust and confidence,’ says Rita. ‘She loves colour so was excited to make bold moves.’
The house is full of long, voluminous rooms, requiring clever configuration to look full but feel uncluttered. The drawing room is divided into two areas. Rita used comfortable Howard & Sons sofas and Berber rugs, ‘to muck it up a bit’. As she says, ‘It’s quite hard not to get too prissy and smart – to run this fine line between being grown up and being representative of the owners’ age and the way they live.’
According to Rita, houses of this scale ‘simply inhale furniture’. So she did not do away with anything that might, at first glance, seem slightly dated: ‘I enjoy working with things like that. Even if I don’t love them immediately, they end up being the ones that bring warmth and depth. You don’t want everything to be too of the moment.’ Some David Linley furniture from the 1990s is a case in point. Handed down by the owner’s father, it now ‘looks terrific’ in a bedroom.
Indeed, this is a house where the old and the new, the past and the present, have been folded together in Rita’s characteristic layered style, to create a home that feels timeless and interesting, while also robust enough to withstand modern family life in the country, with masses of friends, children, dogs and muddy boots. ‘The places we grow up in are formative,’ she says. ‘I think bringing in those elements, if you loved your family home, can make you feel at ease and happy.’ Isn’t that, in the end, all that we are striving for when we decorate?
Rita Konig: ritakonig.com
Paul Massey1/10A vintage sofa upholstered in Paolo Moschino’s ‘Melba Flower Stripe’ in pink and green and a Howard & Sons sofa in Claremont’s ‘Nathalie’ cotton flank an ‘Architect’s’ coffee table from William Yeoward. Behind two vintage rattan chairs from Christopher Hodsoll, openings in the brick wall reveal a second seating area.
Paul Massey2/10In this sitting room, a blind in Le Manach’s ‘Galigai’ and an armchair in Pierre Frey’s ‘Izmir’ in rouge are set off by woodwork in Paint & Paper Library’s ‘Kigali’.
Paul Massey3/10A custom ‘Cordoba’ rug from Vanderhurd picks up on dining chairs in Claremont’s ‘Cunard’ chenille and walls lined in George Spencer Designs’ velvet.
Paul Massey4/10Plain English units painted in ‘Mash’ and an island in ‘Sauce’, with patterned Balineum tiles behind the cooker, create a modern country-house feel.
Paul Massey5/10Antique brass pendant lights, sourced from Streett Marburg, hang above a table with a banquette in Nina Campbell’s ‘Pachinko’ and Marcel Breuer’s ‘Cantilever’ chairs.
Paul Massey6/10Walls in Edward Bulmer’s ‘Milk White’ are the backdrop for an Arts and Crafts cabinet from Miles Griffiths Antiques, a bespoke lamp with a lampshade in a Penny Morrison fabric and artwork from the owners’ collection. A rug from Francesca Gentilli softens the brick floor.
Paul Massey7/10A four-poster is brightened by a headboard in Jean Monro’s ‘Hydrangea & Rose’, Angela Wickstead bed linen and a vintage quilt. John James Audubon prints hang to the left of the bed.
Paul Massey8/10Curtains in Raoul Textiles’ ‘Secret Garden’ are offset by a carpet in a Madeleine Castaing design from Catry.
Paul Massey9/10‘Fuchsia’ wallpaper by Twigs from Simon Payle gives a timeless feel.
Paul Massey10/10Botanical prints from Odyssey Fine Arts tone with ‘Jaisalmer’ wallpaper by John Stefanidis.
