Under the sequoia

The interior designer Christophe Delcourt and the founder of Collection Particulière, Jérôme Aumont, purchased an estate in Normandy

The urge to live in a natural setting was strong, and the weekend house at Honfleur would no longer suffice. So Christophe Delcourt and Jérôme Aumont snapped up this estate of 50 hectares in Normandy. They knew some of the buildings were on the verge of collapse, especially the long annex, a cross between a house, a barn and a stable. Christophe Delcourt talks about the ruins: «It was a classic truss structure, and the walls were falling apart. Certain portions dated back to the 1980s, but there was nothing to salvage other than a lovely fireplace. The place had been used as a barn, its floor still in packed earth, which made the structure unstable. The outer walls were clad in treated pine, identical to the internal finishes. The point was to preserve the regional style of the building while setting our own tone». Jérôme work on the main house will have to wait.

The focus is now on this annex: the previous layout has been opened up, making the 150 sqm of floorspace into a single area, in which to create a central living room, a bedroom, a large open kitchen with fireplace, a dining room and – on the other side – a bathroom with a smaller bedroom. This organization has orderly segments, countering the dizzying 8-meter ceilings. It is a perfect setting for experimenting with all the new creations of the Collection Particulière catalogue, the brand founded by Aumont seven years ago.

Nature is everywhere: trees, including an impressive sequoia, and horses, a true passion for Delcourt. As Aumont says, it is a case of “total symbiosis”: «The house blends into the landscape, asserting all of its potential for natural camouflage».