Where the treetops glisten

When Adrienne Michaelides first set eyes on an empty cottage tucked away in the countryside, she didn’t think twice

This house could have been built with Christmas in mind – it has so much character,’ says Adrienne Michaelides of her picturesque cottage in Surrey. ‘Before moving here, my late husband Sav and I wanted to live somewhere with a history. We had an old cottage when we were first married, then moved to a family house that was bigger but had little character. Once our sons were older, we decided to move again. We wanted to stay in the area, but struggled to find the right house.’

Eventually the couple came across a property that had originally been two workers’ cottages for the local manor house. ‘I knew it was the one before I even set foot inside,’ says Adrienne. ‘As we drove up, I saw the side of the house with its higgledy-piggledy rooftops and slopes, and wonderful views across the fields. It had old bricks, beautiful timbers in every room, and a pretty garden with a vegetable patch. I loved the thought of looking after a little bit of England’s history.’

The house didn’t need any structural work, but the dark interior had to be redecorated. An outbuilding was knocked down and work began on installing a new kitchen. ‘I was keen to have a solid wood kitchen as the ones I’d had in the past were flimsy,’ says Adrienne. ‘I chose a simple painted design for a modern country style. A big plus about the new units was that they were adaptable – due to a 1960s extension, there are four ceiling heights in the kitchen. Also, because the floor slopes, the units had to be installed by a skilled carpenter.’

Next, the bathrooms were revamped and the house was decorated throughout in paler colours to maximise the light. The work took 18 months in all. ‘Decorating this kind of house was hard,’ says Adrienne. ‘We needed specialist fillers for where the timbers meet the old lime plaster, as there is a certain amount of natural movement through the seasons. The challenge with an old house is that nothing is straight. Even putting up a curtain rail was difficult, as neither the floor nor the ceiling above were level, so a spirit level was crucial.’

But, despite the difficulties involved, Adrienne feels a duty to retain the character of the house. ‘It’s a little bit of history and I want to preserve it,’ she says. ‘At one time, the animals would have lived downstairs and people upstairs – you can still see where the opening for the ladder to the upper floor was. It’s a nice feeling to be trusted to look after it.’

Although the cottage is stunning in all seasons, the run-up to Christmas is a favourite time for Adrienne. ‘There are lots of lovely corners of the house to make decorations for,’ she says. ‘I go for long walks to find foliage and tree branches to use, and I add a frosted effect with Epsom salts.’ The house has proved to be an ideal place to spend the festive season, where guests can watch TV in the drawing room, or cosy up by the fireplace in the sitting room. ‘It’s the perfect Christmas home,’ smiles Adrienne.

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