WINTER wonderland
An idyllic thatched cottage with a gorgeous Scandi interior is the perfect place for Sarah Stanley and her family to spend the festive period
When I first saw it I thought it was magical,” says sarah stanley, owner of unique Home stays, when she first spotted this fairytale cottage with its thatched roof near the north Cornish coast. “It was such a pretty cottage up a tiny track. I fell in love with it there and then.” sarah and her husband andy had been looking for a holiday cottage in Cornwall when sarah’s niece spotted the cottage online and alerted her. sarah was equally enamoured when she looked around the interior. “It had a lovely farmhouse feel with its large kitchen, which was part of the original dairy. the cottage is set over four >>
‘The light-filled farmhouse kitchen, with its range cooker, reminds me of baking days as a child, helping Mum in our old farmhouse’
levels so it felt spacious and it had a warmth to it that we loved.”
although the house was in a good state structurally, the interior was rather dated. “It had deep purple carpets going up the stairs and a light pink one in the living room,” says sarah. “the decor just wasn’t right for the property. but I knew we could transform it into something special.”
sarah was keen to tackle the interior and create a warm, rustic look where the kitchen was the heart of the home, with a range cooker and farmhouse table taking pride of place. she also wanted the interior to have a scandi feel while still being sympathetic to its agricultural Cornish roots.
“I was keen for as much as possible to be recycled and hand-built, even down to the loos. the cloakroom reclamation loo has a wooden frame and seat, and a reverse water outlet that works surprisingly well! We took out the standard radiators and replaced
them with reclamation ones – and with a light sanding, they look amazing.
“the original bathroom was only two years old, but it ended up being a blessing in disguise that we decided to remove it, as there was a serious water leak that wasn’t visible,” says sarah. most of the pieces in the bathroom come from reclamation yards.
Restoring the cottage took around three months, with the building team taking time to get every detail right. the exterior walls were painted a pretty marshmallow pink, and the dusky pink windows and door finish off the look beautifully. the dairy end of the cottage was completely replastered to blend more >>
seamlessly into the adjoining older part.
Sarah was keen to give the cottage a very individual look. She enlisted the help of interior designer Paul Hervey and put together a moodboard of the style she wanted to achieve.
She and Paul hunted out original pieces on ebay and in reclamation yards. “I didn’t want any reproduction pieces,” says Sarah. The grey and neutral palette gives it a calm feel, and keeps the look light.
“The kitchen was given a rustic modern farmhouse look by replacing the cabinet doors and sanding back the worktops to create a totally new style. I especially love the range cooker, and we upcycled an old farmhouse table that was my grandmother’s and put a zinc top on it.”
The garden too had a makeover.
“It was very overgrown,” says Sarah. “I have a passion for gardening inherited from my mother and I filled the garden with beautiful roses from
The Cornish Rose Company, with my mum’s help. I had a vision of the cottage surrounded by roses in the summer.
“I love the tranquillity of the setting, it really feels like you’re far removed from the everyday; the perfect place to escape to! We equally enjoy heading off for windswept walks as we do hunkering down by the fire. With the combination of the original cottage and the newer extension, we’ve the perfect mix of cosy and traditional low-ceiling, beamed charm, while the lighter and brighter extension has a summer room feel, whatever the weather. It’s a really cosy place to spend Christmas and that’s one of the best times to visit Cornwall as it’s so invigorating walking on the beach in winter.” w&h