A pretty flint-fronted cottage on the south coast with elegantly pared-back interiors
Readers who use Instagram for interior inspiration may already be familiar with The Flint House, which commands more than forty thousand followers. For those that don’t, it is a visual record of the renovation of a pretty flint-fronted house on the south coast belonging to Samantha Palmer and her husband Adam Weir. Sam is a maven for sourcing second-hand pieces from Facebook Marketplace, eBay and, of course, Instagram. Most famously, the Devon & Devon bath, which she boldly procured from eBay before they even completed on the house. Tenacity is the key, apparently. She waited two years for the glazed bookcase that functions as a kitchen dresser, which came from an antique dealer in Rye via Instagram. It has been shortened to fit the space, given knobs from deVOL so it matches the kitchen cabinets, and looks absolutely perfect.
Tenacity also played a part in the purchase of the house. After ten years plus living in New York and before a stint in Boston, the couple spent a year in the UK. During this time Sam would walk her son to forest school along a road with a collection of striking, mid-nineteenth century, flint-fronted buildings. ‘The flint work is particular to the town and the British seaside. The houses have this whimsical quaintness, with the white masonry, like a Christmas cake. I was just so completely in love with them but never thought we would ever have the opportunity to live in one.’ But they waited, and thanks to a great stroke of luck, one came up for sale some months after their return from Boston and they snapped it up.
The house had belonged to an elderly gentleman who had grown up there and was downsizing. It was in good condition - clean, loved and well-maintained - but nothing had been updated since the Fifties. Aside from the lively decoration, which included teal leopard-print lino and red swirly carpets. There was no central heating, dodgy wiring and the bathroom was downstairs. In many ways however this was a benefit, as so many of the period features were preserved, including doors, coving, architraves and fireplaces. ‘The shell of the house was so beautiful with so much history, I wanted that to be at the forefront of the renovation.’
Nevertheless, a complete overhaul was in order. Alterations to the internal layout, which were conceived with the help of architect Georgina Mann, comprised moving the bathroom upstairs, swapping the wall between the sitting room and the dining room for glazed sliding doors, stealing a small section of the original dining room to create a utility closet and making the under stairs cupboard a downstairs loo.
The only structural alteration was to the dilapidated extension at the rear, which was flattened and rebuilt across the full length of the house to maximise space. A pitched roof gives it an airy feeling, while the tongue-and-groove panelling adds architectural interest. In addition, the small garden, which is enclosed by flint walls was reimagined by Lucy Taylor, who overlaid the cement terrace with reclaimed bricks, and rebuilt the raised beds. ‘Pretty much all the garden was replanted but we kept the ancient pear tree. We replaced the gate but matched the previous Brunswick Green paint colour as a nod to the history of the house.’
Both Sam and Adam work in visually busy jobs, so for the interior they wanted something light and fairly minimal in a palette of natural materials, including stone, leather, wood and seagrass. ‘Hell for us would be living in a colourful, highly patterned environment.’ Sam was particularly influenced by American interior designer Gil Schaefer. ‘I love that “American” look. It always appears so effortless, timeless and comfortable. There’s nothing too contrived or try-hard or trendy. There’s an “ease” that is very difficult to achieve, but which I found hugely inspiring during our renovations.’
Sam’s technique for creating schemes was informed by her time designing accessories for Ralph Lauren. ‘So much work goes into the concept. We would pull hundreds of images on a specific theme, and that’s a habit I haven’t been able to get out of. So when designing the house I did the same, but with things like panelled walls, Victorian staircases and arched showers. That is how my Instagram started, as an evolving mood board of these images. What that level of research does is really hone down the details. So I knew exactly how I wanted the new timber windows to look, including the hardware pieces, the finish, the sash cord (with red flecks) - that level of granular detail is something I’m always tinkering with. Those details, in my opinion, make the design - and even if nobody else cares about them, they are deeply important to me!’
Obviously, this isn’t a quick process, but it produces a compelling Instagram feed, and more importantly a characterful and beautiful home.
Owen Gale1/14‘I think one of the most timeless and evocative greens is that of an old Land Rover Defender. I had some Land Rover Defender colour cards from my days at Ralph Lauren where it is totally normal for someone to be colour matching something to a Defender, so I eyeballed the closest colour to the Eastnor Green or NATO Green, and chose the best match to work with the purple veining of the Calacatta marble worktop. That colour was ‘Night Owl’ by Benjamin Moore.'
Owen Gale2/14The worktop and splash-back is in Calacatta marble.
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Owen Gale4/14In the kitchen a disused fireplace is used as storage for cookbooks.
Owen Gale5/14'The day we got the keys, the thing I was most excited to do was lift the lino, which was everywhere, and see the condition of the floor. I did this in the bedroom and realised that the lino had never been glued down (thankfully), just laid on top of the floor like a massive rug.’ Underneath was the original dark-stained flooring, which inspired their new floor. They achieved this rich, very slightly glossy look with Fiddes’ Hard Wax Oil in Rustic Oak. ‘It took about 5000 test swatches for me to be happy with the shade,’ admits Sam.
Owen Gale6/14The view from the hall in to the kitchen and dining area.
Owen Gale7/14‘In the sitting room I wanted quite a traditional stone colour to complement the flint work outside. Something warm and comfortable but also neutral. The eventual answer was three different shades of ‘Sand’ by Paint & Paper Library: ‘Sand V’ for the walls and skirting; ‘Sand I’ for the ceiling; and ‘Sand IV’ for the doors. The fireplace is from The Architectural Forum and the sofa, another eBay purchase, is by SCP.
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Owen Gale9/14In the dining room is an antique cobbler’s rack bought from Olde Good Thing in New York – one of the few things that came from Sam and Adam’s previous home. The painting is by Rebecca Hardaker and the kilim rug is from Soap & Salvation. The table was an eBay find, the chairs are from Facebook Marketplace and the fireplace surround came from eBay.
Owen Gale10/14In the bedroom the original features are preserved, but the windows were replaced. ‘We had timber reproductions made by a local joiner (upgraded to double glazed) and added solid brass hardware made in England by Croft Architectural.’
Owen Gale11/14In their daughter's bedroom the dark wood floor is tempered by a pretty wallpaper mural by Berlate Studio and sweet, scallop-edged shelves, the shape of which is echoed by the jute rug.
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Owen Gale13/14Bespoke panelling, a free-standing bath from Devon & Devon and an elegant arched shower set with ‘Paint Box’ gloss tiles in ‘Bone’ from Mandarin Stone make this bathroom a quietly opulent space.
Owen Gale14/14Pretty much all the garden was replanted but the couple kept the ancient pear tree.
