SIMPLY IDYLLIC
Simon and Shona Walley updated a Cotswold cottage with a classic country palette, transforming it into the rural home they’d always wanted
After living overseas for more than a decade, a Cotswold cottage proved the perfect place to come home to
When Shona Walley and her husband Simon were moving back to the UK after living overseas for 11 years, finding the right family home was a top priority. ‘We knew exactly what we wanted – a five-bedroom period house with plenty of living space,’ says Shona. ‘Simon works from home and also travels a lot so we had a choice of living anywhere, provided it was near to an airport.’ Being close to the right schools was also a key factor as Shona and Simon have five children: Emilia, Rose,samuel, Mae and Bella. ‘We rented a holiday let in the Cotswolds for six months and enrolled the children in schools on the
Oxfordshire/gloucestershire border,’ says Shona. ‘This focused our property search.’
After a couple of months, a cottage-style property in Gloucestershire caught Shona’s eye. ‘It only had three bedrooms, but the Cotswold village setting was idyllic,’ she says. The cottage needed renovating as it hadn’t been updated for several years and had also stood empty for some time. Despite the fact that considerable work needed doing, Simon and Shona felt sure they could transform the property into the country home they wanted.
Once the purchase was complete, the couple drew up plans for the renovation. Top of Shona’s ‘wish list’ was a large kitchen and open-plan diner, to be housed in a
extension complete with vaulted ceiling. ‘I chose Shaker-style cabinetry for the kitchen so that it wouldn’t date,’ says Shona. The house also needed rewiring, replumbing, replastering and redecorating. The three bedrooms were then reconfigured to create four good-sized bedrooms and the downstairs living space enlarged. Finally, an exterior wall was removed to create a playroom next to the new kitchen.
Shona and Simon rented a holiday let nearby while the work was carried out. ‘We moved back into the house once the first round of work was complete,’ says Shona. ‘We then took a few months off before building another extension at the back of the house, as we wanted to create a downstairs snug and a bedroom upstairs for Emilia.’
With the end of the work in sight, Shona started thinking about the decor. ‘I’ve always been interested in fabrics and decorating,’ she says. ‘And as we’ve never lived anywhere for longer than five years, I’ve had ample opportunity to learn from my mistakes.’
Everything from the family’s former home in the United States had to be kept in storage while the house was renovated, which gave Shona time to work out her interior schemes. In keeping with the architectural style of the cottage, Shona chose a classic country palette of duck-egg blue, soft taupe and cream, enlivened with red accents. She also installed some eye-catching statement lighting to provide a contemporary twist.
Now that the renovation is complete, the family are able to relax and enjoy their home. ‘The cottage and the village are everything we dreamed that English country living would be,’ says Shona. ‘It really is idyllic.’