A former groom's cottage in the Cotswolds with deeply personal interiors

Drawn to this cottage in the Cotswolds by the charming additions made by its previous interior-designer owner, the current custodian was keen to make her own mark with a sympathetic extension and interiors that reflect elements of her life in Portugal and her Scandinavian roots
At the back of the Cotswoldstone house two seating areas  one an old wooden pergola swathed in fragrant white Rosa...
At the back of the Cotswold-stone house, two seating areas – one an old wooden pergola swathed in fragrant white Rosa ‘Sander’s White Rambler’ – offer views of the beautiful garden. Peonies were added by the owner to complement the existing romantic planting of roses, ferns and lavender, anchored by box balls.Mark Anthony Fox

In the kitchen, the cabinetry by Carlton Smith, with French oak and Silestone’s ‘Yukon’ worktops, was hand-painted by Will Foster Studios, which also created the chinoiserie murals. These pick up on 18th-century Portuguese tiles behind the Aga and antique 17th-century Compagnie des Indes china, hung by Patrick Howard of Fine Art Lighting.

Elsewhere on the ground floor, she had the dining room wallpapered in Zoffany’s ‘Verdure’, hung by the decorator so that the scenic focal point is in the optimum position – ‘which makes all the difference’. The original front door was replaced with a window and, instead of entering into a corridor as previously, you now walk into a light and airy entrance hall facing the door into the garden, which gives the old part of the house more integrity. A door from the hall now leads onto two sitting rooms, the first of which has a cupboard staircase going up to two bedrooms via a landing with walls and ceiling in a Braquenié wallpaper featuring a floral design on a nicotine ground from Pierre Frey. This could have felt too much but, in fact, works beautifully and is balanced by the calm sage green of Paint & Paper Library’s archive colour ‘Samphire’ on the woodwork.

The main sitting room, which lies beyond the first smaller sitting room on the ground floor, has panelling installed by Stanley – after he had enlarged the room by laboriously scraping away inches from the thick Cotswold stone walls – and has been made cosy with a warm cream and brown scheme, comfortable furniture and bookshelves. A late 1800s seascape by Tomás de Mello Júnior hangs above the chimneypiece.

Lisbon-based upholsterer Luis Máximo dressed the four-poster in the main bedroom in ‘Honfleur’ in blue green, with a headboard and ottoman in ‘Injigo Lace’ in blue, both by Bennison Fabrics.

Mark Anthony Fox

The main bedroom was once two rooms but the owner had removed a windowless dressing room to make it into one when she moved into the house in 2013. Between its sloping walls, Portuguese upholsterer Luis Maximo squeezed a four-poster, dressed with florals from Bennison Fabrics. The shower in her husband’s bathroom is tiled in 18th-century Portuguese indigo tiles, while her own bathroom is housed in a turret added by Stanley, with a freestanding bath positioned by the window.

Outside, a swimming pool was installed beside an existing arbour, on which the roof was raised and windows put in so that the pleasingly pastoral view through to the field of sheep remains uninterrupted. Edged by York stone, with a terraced area to one side, the pool is lined in porcelain tiles with an oxidised glaze that give the impression of verdigris copper.

Hornbeam and yew hedging provides a secluded feel in this area, where The Heveningham Collection’s ‘Chaise Longue’ chairs are arranged on the York stone terrace, with steps leading to the pool house. The fountain spouts were made to the owner’s design by Bulbeck Foundry for the pool, which is lined with Mandarin Stone’s ‘Verdigris Porcelain’ tiles to give the impression of patinated copper.

Mark Anthony Fox

In the garden, the owner was helped by historic landscape specialist Sarah Cotter Craig of CC Landscape Management and designer Phillippa May, who both worked with the existing garden, adding further layers of romanticism, including beds of wild daisies, peonies and roses, walkways and hidden areas. These add to the feeling of bucolic happiness in this quiet corner of the Cotswolds. Both the current owner and Stanley had their ambitions for this house, each taking inspiration from their native castles. Now, with the help of Christian, a further successful stage has been built into the history of the groom’s house.

Fleming Architects: flemingarchitects.co.uk || CC Landscape Management: cottercraig@btinternet.com || Phillippa May Design: phillippamay.com