HOME FOR ALL SEASONS

THIS CREATIVE, RUSTIC FAMILY HOME IN THE NORTH ESSEX COUNTRYSIDE PROVES THAT BEAUTIFUL HOMES DEPEND LESS ON BUDGET AND MORE ON SMART IDEAS AND SPADEWORK

With four grown-up children living at home, Shula and Jim Clark’s rural Essex home was starting to feel like it was bursting at the seams, but rather than build an extension, they decided to make more living space by renovating their garden instead.

“We love the Scandinavian style and hygge ethos and wanted to create a space where we could enjoy the garden, whatever the weather,” explains Shula, who lives with husband Jim and their children Tabitha, 16, Lulu, 19, Gabriel, 21, and 23-year-old Harvey in Marks Tey, Essex.

Keen to do it themselves, Jim got to work making the garden room structure, cladding and furniture out of reclaimed wood. Shula painted the back wall a deep grey to make the decor stand out, but left the scaffolding board floor and one wall natural. Thrifty finds, including the hanging chair, allweather rug and a corner sofa make this room feel like an extension of the house. “We spend so much time here, we love it,” says Shula. “Styling up a dinner party is one of my favourite activities”

There’s also a growing menagerie in the house with two cockapoos, two pygmy goats, a pair of Persian Chinchilla cats, a couple of rabbits and three chickens. “Seeing a bunny hop across the kitchen or a pygmy goat wander in just makes my day. I’m a childminder and the little ones absolutely adore all the animals, too,” she smiles.

The couple bought the property more than 20 years ago. “We weren’t expecting to want to buy it, but as soon as I walked into the hallway, it just felt like home” says Shula.

The initial plan was to do up the house and move on, but as time passed and they adapted the property to suit their growing family, they decided to stay. The house originally had three bedrooms, a downstairs bathroom and a huge double garage, but soon after moving in, the couple extended the upstairs to add two new bathrooms, a bedroom and »

“THE HOUSE IS CONSTANTLY EVOLVING. JIM IS BRILLIANT AT TRANSLATING MY IDEAS”

a dressing room. A few years later they transformed the garage into a playroom and a fifth bedroom, and their most recent project has been to create a beautiful open-plan kitchen-diner. “I think we’re done with the building work for a while, but never say never,” says Shula with a grin.

“The home is constantly evolving. Jim is brilliant at translating my ideas into solutions.”

A keen crafter herself, Shula’s creations are on display throughout. The striking dried flower wreaths in the garden room and hallway were homemade and the house is brimming with foraged finds. An avid bargain hunter, Shula loves to collect soft furnishings. She admits, “I’m always on the lookout for Scandi-inspired ceramics or a new cushion or throw. I like to layer the rooms with soft furnishings to create a welcoming and tactile feel.”

Shula is a talented upcycler, too, and many of the pieces in her home have had a previous life. The dining table and chairs were all second-hand finds, sanded down and painted to give a contemporary feel. “I don’t like things going to waste. When we completed our kitchen renovation, we reused all the old floor boards to create a sliding door into the laundry room and to clad the kitchen island. I love the feel of the old wood – it adds character to the house,” she explains.

The light, bright kitchen-diner has been their biggest challenge to date as there was a strict budget. To keep costs down, Jim – a kitchen fitter – used basic units and added black wrought ironeffect handles and hinges to give a handmade feel. A trio of lights over the island and a light-up sign on a shelf above the sofa bring a warm glow to the room as evening falls. “I love to entertain and this is now my favourite room, there’s always someone perched at the island or around the table.”

Mixing high street and vintage pieces has given Shula’s home a unique character, where each item has a story to tell. Her style is simple: “I buy timeless things that won’t date and that I truly love, rather than following the latest fashion. I want my home to feel unique rather than being ‘on-trend.’”

“I LOVE THE FEEL OF THE OLD WOOD – IT ADDS CHARACTER TO THE HOUSE”

Built by Jim, using reclaimed wood, the garden room is the ideal area to host a family gathering, whatever the weather. Shula has used budget finds and savvy upcycling to create a space that is both cosy and welcoming

Shula loves to cook, so the recently completed kitchen-diner is one of her favourite rooms – especially as there’s always someone perched at the island or around the table. With a strong eye for interiors, Shula has reclaimed, and recycled, to create a garden room with a modern-rustic hygge vibe. She stuck to a simple colour palette with natural features to avoid the space feeling overly fussy

Keen to avoid waste, Shula and Jim reused the old floorboards from their renovation to clad the kitchen island and create a sliding laundry-room door (right). The dining table and chairs, meanwhile, were also a secondhand find, spruced up with a lick of paint to tie them in with the overall colour scheme. Shula’s foraged finds all work to create a snug family home, fit for the Clarks and their small menagerie of animals

Reclaimed pallet wood has been used horizontally to give a cabin-like feel in the en-suite and works to cleverly disguise the pipework. Bathtime is made extra luxurious thanks to the neat shelf on which to display candles and vintage finds. Layered soft furnishings, such as cushions and throws, are one of Shula’s weaknesses but key to creating an inviting room with a hygge feel