ALFRESCO DINING

small kitchen has been turned back into a snug with a woodburner and squashy sofas. The adjoining kitchen/diner has been extended into what was the pub garden. Now, double aluminium-framed doors open out onto a courtyard garden, where a wide sliding entrance connects the house to the beach beyond. Rosy tree mallows and clusters of pink valerian have crept up the shingle towards the garden, connecting the cottage to this unique landscape.

Wall panelling is used throughout the house – a nod to wood-clad Swedish interiors, but also an effective way of protecting areas of high traffic. Alex’s friend, Nicola Harding, of the interior design practice Harding & Read, advised on the colour scheme, convincing them to paint the entrance in Farrow & Ball’s Setting Plaster. ‘At the time, I remember thinking: “Really? Not just white?”’ Sliding doors and woodwork are painted in punchy Blue Ground, with rows of patterned encaustic tiles demarcating entranceways. Utilitarian Shaker-style pegs and hidden cupboards keep the narrow communal spaces orderly.

On the first floor, the main bedroom, which has been painted Oval Room Blue, is furnished with locally sourced antique and mid-century furniture. The couple extended the connecting sunroom, which looks out over a row of beach huts and a flotilla of fishing boats. With the sun rising directly opposite, this is the ideal spot for morning coffee. ‘Normally the rug in here is