AMERICAN BEAUTY
Sandra Wijnberg used a sympathetic and sensitive touch to stamp her own style on an exquisite historic house in New England
A considered update pays homage to the heritage of a traditional clapboard house in Massachusetts
The challenge of owning an historic property is that there is often a balance to be struck between conserving the past and adapting for the future. But when Sandra Wijnberg came across this 18th-century house in Massachusetts, she was pleasantly surprised. ‘I was looking for a bolthole and couldn’t believe my luck when I walked in and realised everything matched my taste and style perfectly,’ she says.
Completed in 1790, the classic Georgian house had survived to a remarkable degree. Other than its original owners, it had been lived in by just two other families before Sarah acquired it in 2007. ‘The previous inhabitants had carried out a 10-year long restoration with painstaking care and detail,’ Sarah explains. ‘The kitchen was sensational and all the woodwork, including the floors, had been dry-scraped by hand. Also, about 100 years-worth of wallpaper had been meticulously peeled off the original horsehair plaster walls, providing a lovely distressed quality that could never be replicated.’
Sensitive to the building’s heritage, Sandra and her partner Hugh spent time getting to know the house before introducing
FAVOURITE ROOM ‘The kitchen still delights me as much as the first time I saw it. I especially love the warming colours, the feeling of age and calming atmosphere’
sympathetic changes to make it their own. Outside, a freestanding barn, which was beyond repair, was replaced with another 150-yearold barn. A row of redundant open-sided carriage barns at the back of the house then became a large sitting room with stunning views across the garden to the mountains beyond. ‘We kept the design to reflect the old barn-like space, retained the roof pitch and recycled timber for the beams and the floors,’ says Sandra.
She wanted a harmonious interior scheme to provide a fresh interpretation of the property’s original decor while retaining its ambience. To help her, Sandra called upon designer Selina van der Geest, who works organically to reflect a property’s natural setting in her designs. Scale was an early consideration in the large sitting room, therefore many of the pieces – like the sofa and the steel and stone coffee table – are custom-made to fit the space. A palette of soft brick and pinky reds with neutral blinds, and the tactile qualities of wood floors and leather-bound sisal rugs combine to make it warm and relaxing, especially in winter when fires are lit in every room.
Elsewhere, only the lightest of touches have been applied to a house that has been loved by generations of families. Sandra and Hugh have added their own chapter to its story through carefully curated collections of personal items, eclectic art and photography, and treasured finds from London, Venice and India. A display of antique chopping implements adds a quirky touch to the kitchen.
Redesign complete, Sandra is happy in the knowledge she has respected the architecture and history of the building while moving forwards. ‘The house,’ she says, contentedly, ‘is just perfect.’
Design advice ‘When restoring an old house, it’s important to research its history’