The Brief
Infusing this five bedroomed new-build property constructed in spring 2024 with an aged look reminiscent of a period house was the challenge for all involved in the project. The partly oak-framed building is inspired by US Craftsman style and has the scale of a large, light-filled country home where the emphasis is on deep verandahs for inside/outside living. The house also features stone and red brick, and the client wanted the materials used internally to continue the natural theme. A mix of stone and wooden flooring was the prerequisite for the ground floor for practical and aesthetic reasons and because it would give the home an older more established feel, and the client also required tiled floors in the bathrooms.
Hudson Homes & Interiors were commissioned to design the interior and co-founder Abi Birch, who has had a long relationship with Artisans of Devizes, ensured they were her first port of call when it came to the flooring, working with Alison Conti at the Hartley Wintney showroom.
‘Artisans will always be my go-to people as they’re really helpful,’ she says. ‘Their customer service is amazing and nothing is ever too much of a problem.’
The Project
Key to the aged aesthetic was the inclusion of natural limestone and terracotta flooring downstairs. The look required for the kitchen was a back kitchen with a pared-back feel and Artisans’ Vieux Bourgogne limestone in an Ancient finish was chosen for both this and the pantry area. ‘It instantly helps these rooms look as though they could have been built a century ago and suits the scullery/servants’ kitchen feel that I was seeking,’ says the client. The different hues within the stone paved the way for the use of bold colours on cabinetry. ‘I’ve used Vieux Bourgogne previously in an old rectory, where it was recommended for the existing scullery floor, so it has that vibe. It was quite an obvious choice,’ says Abi.
The stone proved so popular with Abi and the client that it was continued through into the guest cloakroom. Here, it is teamed with dramatic walls in Studio Green by Farrow & Ball and a bespoke vanity. ‘I love the contrast of it with the dark colours,’ says Abi.
According to the client, Tetbury Terracotta Parquet was a product on an early wish list due its warmth of colour and flexibility of use with both pale and dark paint colours.’ Used in the family entrance, bootroom, utility and ground floor WC and shower room, the rough and natural texture suits the aesthetic of the working family areas, and injects an almost potting shed vibe.
When it came to the bathrooms, the client wanted each bathroom to have its own personality appropriate to the family member it was being created for.
The exquisite floor in the main bathroom was inspired by a mosaic floor that the client had seen in a hotel bathroom in Copenhagen. ‘I visited Artisans and asked how we could re-create it,’ says Abi. ‘We spent the day at the Hartley Wintney showroom and picked out lots of samples and Aliseo Marble Honed Wicker Mosaic was the one that we felt replicated it the best.’ The grey inset in the tiles ties in with dark colours of the bath surround and the vanity unit. ‘We used dark colours to pick out and highlight them,’ says Abi. The alcove beside the window in the bathroom made the perfect recess for the beautiful freestanding bath from Porter Bathroom and the alcove was reframed with an attractive arch detail.
The guest suite was decorated with a neutral palette to suit any future occupants. The client was influenced by Californian designers and keen to use wood in some of the bathrooms but nervous of the maintenance. She was delighted to discover the wood-effect Manoir Porcelain Amber floor tiles and describes them as ‘a game changer as the same look could be achieved.’ Every shower is a wet room with no shower trays used so the floor needed to be tanked and to run through into the shower cubicles. To complement the floor tiles, Berber Porcelain Gloss Bianco wall tiles were chosen. In a nod to Moroccan Zellige tiles, these have a subtle tonal variation on a slightly undulated surface that evokes a handmade feel, perfect for evoking an artisanal effect.
Credits:
Interior Design - Hudson Homes & Interiors
Kitchen by Thomas Ford and Sons
Photography - Chris Snook