Moor the merrier

This historic Pump House in Ilkley has had its third makeover in 12 years and this time there’s an injection of colour and style. Sharon Dale reports. Pictures by Heidi Marfitt.

One of just three properties on Ilkley Moor, the Pump House, built in 1848, is among Ilkley’s most remarkable homes. It belonged to Yorkshire Water, which managed to get planning permission to turn it into a dwelling.

Developer Kingsford then bought it and carried out a sensitive conversion, ensuring that the exterior of the building retained its historic integrity.

Inside, they created living space with an “upside down” layout. The new first floor housed a kitchen and sitting room, along with a balcony overlooking the famous moor, while all the bedrooms were at ground level.

With sensational views and a prime location, the property was snapped up in 2008 as a “good-to-go” new home.

But after 172 years in stasis, it seems change suits the Pump House. In the 12 years since it became a home, it has had two major makeovers.

The first owners turned the first floor into one large, open-plan space and replaced the brand new kitchen with a swankier version.

The ground floor was reconfigured to create three bedrooms, a house bathroom and a utility room.

A small fortune was spent on creating a basement that became a cinema room, dressing room and workshop and £40,000 was lavished on a hi-tech sound and lighting system.

When the owners came to sell in 2012, estate agent Lester Hurst of Hunters marketed the property as “a house James Bond would be proud of ” and declared that the first floor parapet balcony was just the place for a vodka martini, shaken not stirred.

The work and 007 references made the Pump House even more saleable and it was snapped up by Andrew Holdsworth, who was keen to have a base close to his family in Ilkley.

Andrew is responsible for giving the property its latest transformation after commissioning interior designer Ann Marie Cousins of AMC Interior Design to make some changes.

“It started out with Andrew wanting me to source some cabinets and new rugs but it turned into something bigger,” says Ann Marie, whose first task was to get to know her client’s likes and dislikes.

“Andrew has an engineering background and so he pays great attention to detail. After I suggested a swirly Paul Smith rug and he rejected it, it became clear that he prefers straight lines and geometric designs,” she says.

He was, however, used to working

with designers on homes he had in America and trusted Ann Marie when she suggested that he bring more colour into his home, which was still decorated in the safe neutrals he had inherited from the previous owners.

“Andrew was open to using strong colour but thought it would be better if we limited it to the end walls on the top floor.

“I encouraged him to use it on another wall so that the TV vanishes against it,” she says.

Farrow and Ball’s deep grey Downpipe and Plummett were used to great effect and work well with the framed photographs by Andy Savage featuring local scenes.

Ann Marie also created distinct identities for the sitting, dining and kitchen areas on the top floor.

A Loom ds2 rug by Kristina Lassus and a Key Slate rug by Suzanne Sharpe from The Rug Company added warmth, colour and texture to the vast space, while new cushions help soften the BoConcept leather sofas.

“Andrew wanted to keep the sofas. He bought them with the house and he likes that the white one featured in the Bond movie Quantum of Solace,” says Ann Marie, who also came up with the idea for new Roman blinds in Pierre Frey’s Leo Noir fabric with edging and pelmets in Warwick Lovely II Coal.

“Some of the items are high end but others, such as the cushions, are from M&S, John Lewis and TK Maxx,” she adds.

On the ground floor, what was a long, dark hallway is now a useful space with a pop of colour.

Ann Marie commissioned Dovetail Kitchens to make coat pegs and a pew, both painted in Farrow and Ball’s cheery orange Blazer. She also topped the limestone floor with coir coconut roll matting from Searles of Ilkley.

Ilkley moor became known nationwide for its natural springs and hydrotherapy, which became popular in the 1800s.

The moor was immortalised in the dialect song “On Ilkla Moor Baht ‘at” by a Wesleyan Church choir. Legend has it that the choir was picnicking when two of the party went missing. On their return, one of the choir uttered the first line of the song: “Wheear ‘as ta bin sin ah saw thee?” It was later put to the tune of the 1805 hymn Cranbrook by Thomas Clark.

“The coir matting is practical and the pew means there is somewhere to sit and take off your shoes and somewhere to put them as there are storage baskets underneath,” she says.

Her final brief was to refresh the master bedroom suite and the guest bedroom.

The master bedroom suite is enormous and she wanted to break it up and soften it.

Sisal and hide rugs break up the large expanse of limestone flooring and the off-white walls were repainted in Charleston Gray, which teams beautifully with a new yellow chair.

Jodin metal bedside drawers have plenty of storage and there are now pendant lights at each side of the bed.

The guest bedroom wall was painted in Farrow and Ball’s drawing room blue and Purbeck stone and the floor covered with a Stacks rug by Jennifer Manners. A useful task wall light by Original BTC completes the look that Andrew is delighted with.

“Andrew was a great client. He can see the value of investing in quality and he was brave when I made bolder suggestions,” says Ann Marie, who is planning to expand her business by offering colour consultations.

“A lot of people like the idea of colour but they are afraid to use it. The idea of consultations is that I can tell them what will work well in their home.”

AMC Design, www. amcinteriordesign.co.uk