MAISON D'ÊTRE
AN ABANDONED HOTEL IN SOUTH- EAST FRANCE IS NOW A BLISSFUL RURAL BOLTHOLE AND B& B THANKS TO ONE IMAGINATIVE COUPLE
“I HAVE A PASSION FOR RENOVATION... I LOVE TO PRESERVE THINGS THAT REALLY DESERVE IT”
When the urge to leave the city became too much, Angèle Vuillet and Patrice Coeytaux didn’t have to wander far to find their idyllic country home. At the time, they were living in Annecy in the Haute-Savoie region of France, an area known for its mountains, lakes, castles and dramatic gorge, Les Gorges du Fier.
A short drive (12km) from Annecy, is the village of Lovagny where they found an abandoned family hotel and restaurant for sale. Tucked away in a glade, the house, built in 1894, felt enchanted. It was also peaceful: the only sounds were birdsong, the rustle of the trees and the burble of the river below.
A FRIENDLY RUIN
The delapidated state of the house did not prevent Angèle making an offer. “We immediately recognised its potential,” she says. “The height of the ceilings, the brick-vaulted windows, the beautiful shutters… its general charm and cosiness delighted us.”
Inspired by its history as a hotel, they decided to turn it into a B&B. “The inscription ‘café-restaurant: lunches and dinners’ is still on the façade,” says Angèle. Her offer was accepted, and six months of building began. The couple’s love of interiors sped things along. “I have a passion for renovation,” says Angèle. “I love to preserve things that deserve it.”
First off, they reconfigured the downstairs space, turning several boxy rooms into one larger living space. “We tore down a wall to create more room and replaced the exisiting massive fireplace with a woodburning stove,” says Angèle. Windows were replaced, »
the roof repaired, walls insulated and a modern central heating system installed. Then the fun began: it was time to decorate and buy furniture.
A HOUSE OF CHARACTER
“When it came to deciding how to furnish the house, we were guided by intuition,” says Angèle. “We wanted to preserve the character of the place but add creature comforts. Like many interior decorators, I tend to use a mix of styles from different eras to breathe life into a property.”
The result is a relaxed home filled with mix of comtemporary furniture, idiosyncratic bits and pieces and classic vintage pieces. The guest rooms feel crisp and modern with just the right amount of interesting things to prevent them feeling boring. This mix of styles extends to the outside space where tables and chairs on the terrace provide a leafy setting for guests to eat breakfast.
One of the spacious, high-ceilinged rooms downstairs is now Angèle and Patrice’s work room where they run their interior design business and keep an eye on the bookings for the B&B.
Their final task was to rename the house. They went for ‘Tombée du Ciel’ – ‘Fallen from the Sky’, and it does indeed feel like a little patch of paradise that’s been dropped from heaven. You can book rooms in the house via airbnb.co.uk.