Victorian splendour with plenty of modern surprises in market town
Heathcote House, Pickering. Price: Offers over £550,000. Contact: Blenkin and Co., tel: 01904 671672, www. blenkinandco.com WHEN John and Sarah Clark bought a seven-bedroom B&B in the pretty market town of Pickering, they had no intention of cooking industrial quantities of bacon and egg every morning.
Instead, they put their time and energy into turning the guest house back into a beautiful family home. The B&B’s private quarters in the loft were made into a magnificent master suite with bedroom, sitting area, dressing room and bathroom.
The cement render on the outside of the house was removed and the stone re- pointed and they tackled the old first floor letting rooms, taking out all the en-suites to create large bedrooms and a house bathroom. On the ground floor, the dining room was turned into a study, the sitting room restored.
The interiors are sensational thanks to Sarah’s talent for interior design. She owns Stitches soft furnishings and Interiors at Nine to Eleven in Malton and combined working on projects all over the country with her own.
The furniture includes bespoke pieces that Sarah sells in her shops. The sofas are her own design and are made and upholstered by local craftsmen.
She mixes new with old finds from her favourite antique shops and has a penchant for framing everything from objects such as baby shoes to posters and maps.
The pictures sit on walls painted in Farrow and Ball. Wallpaper is by Harlequin and fabrics include her favourite Zoffany and Colefax and Fowler,
The final phase of their home makeover was a kitchen extension. It is a contemporary contrast to the original Victorian house and includes a glazed lantern roof that features energyefficient, argon-filled glass,
It allows light to flood in and there’s more natural light from large windows and double doors that lead onto the garden. The kitchen units and appliances are from Concept Kitchens in York, while the large oak and gloss dining table is bespoke, designed by Sarah and made by
We’ve been here ten years and I thought I’d be here forever, but John wants a house with land.
a local joiner. The couple and their daughter Lucia are moving to a house with enough land for horses. “We’ve been here ten years and I thought I’d be here forever but John wants a house with land and so we are selling. I’ll be sad to leave,” says Sarah.
The property has 3,200sq ft of space. It has an entrance and staircase hall, drawing room, family room, study, rear hall, kitchen/dining room, utility room with side entrance and cloakroom. On the first floor, there are three double bedrooms and a family bathroom. On the second floor, there is a master bedroom suite with two dressing rooms and a bathroom. Outside, there is a south facing garden, greenhouse, triple garage and parking space.