From restored heritage homes to new builds with all the charm of a classic country cottage, these homes celebrate the best of country style.
This must be Rose Cottage. I've never even heard of this hamlet but now I must go. Blaise Hamlet is a hamlet in north-west Bristol England, composed of a complex of small cottages around a green. They were built around 1811 for retired employees of Quaker banker and philanthropist John Scandrett Harford, who owned Blaise Castle House. The hamlet was designed by John Nash, master of the Picturesque style. He had worked for Harford on other buildings. The cottages are now owned by the National Trust. They are still occupied and not open to the public, but the ensemble may be viewed from the outside. All the cottages, and the sundial on the green (which is accessible to the public), are Grade I listed buildings. Rose Cottage is now rented out by the National Trust as a holiday cottage. image source There is a composit of all the cottages HERE on Flickr. What a wonderful man John Harford must have been. The whole concept gives me goose bumps, and knowing he carried it out is simply wonderful. This must be one of the most charming places in all of England. Have a great weekend.
Whether it is a large period conservatory, a small kitchen conservatory or a modern conservatory, Vale Garden Houses have the knowledge and experience to design bespoke conservatories in any style for any property.
A simple though idyllic country home in Gordon, about an hour west of Melbourne.
The hottest country getaway. An hour’s drive from central London, Heckfield Place Hampshire is literally is the Place to be seen (and sleep). Here’s why.
Discover how Claire and Alex’s renovation transformed this rundown property in country Victoria into a home that is both modern and timeless.
After stumbling upon this 1940s weatherboard cottage in the hinterland of the Mornington Peninsula, this couple restored it to its former glory.
I had no idea how beautiful the homes in New Zealand are. Auckland has suburb after suburb of beautifully restored tradition wooden houses...
The history of this house in Costa Brava, began in the 50s but it has been abandoned for the last 40 years. Owner and interior designer Eug...
10 favorite homes that make a grand impression. Take a peek at some of our favorite ways to spruce your exterior in style. Happy Monday!
Не всем ведь повезло со снегом и морозной погодой зимой, и даже больше, не для всех Новый Год и Рождество ассоциируется с сугробами и катанием на санках. ✌Пуфик - блог о дизайне интерьера
This Grade II-listed Georgian farmhouse in West Sussex features a hallway, sitting room, dining room, kitchen, drawing room, family room, utility room, boot room, five bedrooms and three bathrooms.
Een verlangen naar het buitenleven bracht Karen Roos en Koos Bekker naar Babylonstoren in Zuid-Afrika, een klein uur ten oosten van Kaapstad.
Over the past 20 years, British Vogue’s well-travelled former fashion director Lucinda Chambers has filled her house near Toulouse with an eclectic mix of colourful flea-market finds
This DIY-savvy couple took on the ultimate project when they purchased a brick colonial house and transformed it into a charming farmhouse abode.
I love all the houses I put on House Nerd. But with its unpretentious character details, classic weatherboard build and young owners who DIYed and decorated the whole house on a shoestring budget with lots of secondhand, op shop and side-of-the-road finds, this Palmyra cottage felt extra-special to me the moment I entered. I grew up in Palmyra – I lived my whole childhood in the same house, a 1950s
North of Malibu on a bluff overlooking Broad Beach, Richard Shapiro created a romantic villa with a splash of Mediterranean style Richard Shapiro is a noted arts philanthropist, art collector, antiquaire, who offers antiques and art of exceptional merit at his antiques gallery, along with opulent and primitive pieces at Studiolo, fabrics, Bordoni leather, and his own furniture designs. Designer/antiquaire Richard Shapiro wasn’t looking for a new house when he set off with a friend to view a property for sale in remote Broad Beach. He was perfectly happy with his Holmby Hills residence, his busy life in Los Angeles running his design and antiques and art gallery and collection, Studiolo, and creating gardens and residences for clients. “I went to see the site on a lark,” recalled Shapiro. “I stepped inside the front gate, saw the view, and discovered total seclusion. I was smitten. Within thirty minutes I knew exactly the house I would build there.” The massive antique French front door and a circular turret are the focal point of the entry courtyard. Shapiro planted fully grown cypress and boxwood for maximum effect. Los Angeles antiquaire Richard Shapiro created his new house to look like a centuries-old Mediterranean retreat. Now, three years later, he stands in his ethereal light-filled living room overlooking the ocean. Charming smaller rooms are tucked among terraces and stairways, and the villa-style retreat provides a perfect year-round escape, a fantasy with the whiff of the Mediterranean. On the edge of the bluff overlooking the beach a pair of handsome two-hundred-year-old Monterey cypress frame the view. Steps lead down to the solitary beach. Pelicans in formation hover and swoop, and silvery whales bask in kelp beds just off-shore. In the ethereal living room, 20-feet high steel framed windows and doors frame the ocean view. Walls were hand-plastered to suggest antiquity. “I originally planned it as a weekend house, and I’ve found I’m spending more and more time here,” said Shapiro. “Friends drive up from Los Angeles, we have drinks and watch the sunset, and enjoy dinner on the terrace with a big fire on cool evenings.” The villa is so polished, so perfectly at home on its site, that it’s hard to imagine Shapiro’s property included a tumbledown beach shack, roofless and windowless, in a tangle of vines. “I loved the fact that I’d be starting from scratch, creating whatever I wanted,” said Shapiro. “Tall hedges and bougainvillea disguised the adjacent houses, so nothing would intrude on my concept.” He quickly acquired the 40 feet wide and 200 feet deep property and started plans to build on the footprint of the old house. A Moroccan-style courtyard, thick plaster walls, and a Cosmati-style mosaic on the dining room wall create the mood. The white powder-coated steel dining table by MDF Italia brings a sharp modern tone to the dining area. Cost Plus chairs were painted marine blue. Torso is 4th Century Roman. “I’ve always been in love with antiquity, the Mediterranean, North African architecture,” said Shapiro, a longtime collector of high-profile contemporary art. “This house is a folly, designed to look like an ancient building I discovered hidden beneath the undergrowth for centuries on this remote bluff, “ said Shapiro. “I planned the interiors to look old, too. I’ve always been attracted to antiquity, and want to live in another time.” A two-hundred-year-old Monterey cypress frames the path leading down to Broad Beach. Evenings, a massive stone fireplace warms the terrace. For many years, Shapiro’s extensive travels throughout Europe in search of antiques and inspiration included visiting and exploring historic chateaux and Renaissance villas. He admired the patina of age on ancient palaces in Sicily, and wanted to replicate that sweet ruined state in his villa. On a recent trip to Marrakech he discovered crenellated walls and vivid geometric floor tiles, styles he adopted for his Moroccan-style terrace. With his simple open plan for the house, he commissioned steel-framed windows and doors for their slender grace and resistance to winter storms. As the double-frame house rose on the site, he worked with specialist plaster team from Ireland, lead by Ian Hardwick, to stain, buff, scrub and rough up the ivory-colored plaster mix to make walls look centuries old. “I wanted everything to look old, worn, faded, weathered, and rough,” he said. Faded frescoes by Ilia Anossov add to the look of the Renaissance. A sleek steel stairway balustrade, painted gunmetal gray, was inspired by sculptors such as Richard Serra. Upstairs, supported by centuries old beams, is the bedroom. The island and the back wall of the kitchen are honed basalt. An antique Turkish Suzani quilt adds a jolt of color in the bedroom. The white cube bathroom was crafted of Thassos marble. But most brilliant, he juxtaposed his antiques and taupe sandstone slab floors with the crisp cubist outlines of linen-covered Studiolo LAvventura chairs in the living room. A sinuous modern steel stairway balustrade crafted by Glenn Fischer curves past centuries-old ceiling beams. Over eighteen months of construction and careful attention to every detail, Shapiro has created a dream life for himself. “The house was a labor of love, and I was on-site 24/7,” recalled Shapiro. He added a new guest suite at the back of the house, and in the process crafted a sunny Moroccan terrace with an old stone fountain and the graphic punch of bright turquoise and white Moroccan floor tiles set in a vibrant zigzag pattern. Bougainvillea spills over the crenellated walls, and clipped box spheres in terrace cotta pots jostle with rain-washed Provencal stone troughs and an elegant attenuated stone urn. The sea air and sibilant surf sounds layer on the ancient Sicilian atmosphere. An arched steel-framed doorway opens the stone-floored study into the sculptural garden. Richard Shapiro’s ‘collector’s cabinet’ study is a theatrical refuge with prized North African photography, a turned-leg eighteen-century Spanish desk, and a sandstone and slate floor, chipped to look old. Walls are plastered using a traditional Moroccan technique. At Broad Beach, Shapiro’s perfect day begins with an early morning walk on the beach, discovering sculptural rocks unearthed by the tide and spying cormorants and herons as he meanders. “On a summer day, friends arrive for lunch that lingers on until the evening,” he said. “We sit outside listening to the waves, a full moon rises, the stars and constellations are bright. There is nowhere else I’d rather be.” Shapiro designed sweet places for repose—including an outdoor terrace and a plastered hemispherical niche with a custom-designed curved sofa. In the Morocco-style courtyard, zigzag tiles were from Marrakech. CREDITS: All photographs by the brilliant photographer Lisa Romerein. Lisa, based in Santa Monica, photographs for many publications including C magazine, House Beautiful and Santa Barbara magazine. She is the photographer for ANN GETTY INTERIOR STYLE, by Diane Dorrans Saeks, newly published by Rizzoli. http://lisaromerein.com Richard Shapiro’s extraordinary realm of the imagination can be found in the magical design triangle of Melrose Avenue near the junction of North Robertson Drive in Los Angeles. For more details on his Los Angeles antiques and art studio, as well as his exclusive furniture designs and private interior design commissions: www.studiolo.com
French Architecture and Different Style of Houses
Poets Lodge Daylesford, which comprises three separate buildings including a restored 1850s house, is now open for bookings.
Designer Katie Monkhouse takes us inside this single family home renovation in San Francisco that gained style and space after they got rid of a pesky atrium.
We all know that some paints are like no others and the colour we're looking at in detail today, Farrow and Ball Hardwick White (5) is certainly one of them. With that accolade though comes the flip-s
Enjoy this selection of beautiful sun rooms to brighten these rainy spring days. You'll find a variety of styles and decor.
Take a tour of some of the most inspiring maisons et jardins from our archives.
Get some home decor ideas from different interior design and architectural websites. Learn what the core concept in right interior design is.
The actress turns to her friend, director Gaby Dellal, to help breathe new life into a centuries-old countryside abode
door's open, have a stroll through a classic Sassafras cottage - mind the dogs aawwgghh, I wanna live in the ranges too.....
To get you inspired to spruce up your home's curb appeal, here's an epic roundup of gorgeous exteriors organized by style.
A lovingly restored Bellingen home, in northern NSW.
Going to the book store these days to look for décor magazines is soooo depressing! There is so little available now! Since it seems like the economy is getting better, perhaps we can hope for some new titles in the future or maybe some old titles returning. That would be nice. Imagine Southern Accents being published again. If you do happen to be looking for a new magazine to read, the French language Campagne is an interesting one. Campagne tends to get overshadowed by the slicker Cote Sud and Cote Quest and that’s a shame. Most of the foreign décor magazines are so different than ours. The houses are not styled for the photoshoot, which can be either refreshing or off putting, depending on your personal preference. Campagne’s houses tend to be really not prepared, as if the photographer just showed up one morning, camera in tow, totally unexpected. But, it’s this easy approach to décor that is part of the appeal of the magazine. They have a great web site too – the best part being you can read the articles translated into English on your computer. The computerized translations are not perfect, but at least you can get the basic meaning of the stories. Here are a few houses from the magazine that caught my eye. Enjoy! HOUSE #1: This hotel particulier, a Napoleon III styled mansion, was until recently used as a rehab hospital. It was purchased by a couple who are antique dealers. Together they restored the house to its once former glamour. Here, the main living area shows how the rooms are laid out on an enfilade. Notice the urns that are enfilade too: small, medium, then large. I love the shock of the red amidst all the blue and I love the lone urn standing on a rustic ladder. The same room, opposite view. The house, built in 1860, came with historical documents which the owners used to recreate the original furnishings. When the house was bought, the original ceiling was hidden by a false one, which the new owners removed. They also faux marbled the walls in this room. The floors are oak and were pickled and scraped using a brushed steel wool. The walls were stripped too. The owners mixed an industrial styled table with antique chairs covered in ticking. The kitchen. I would love to see what is through that door! Gorgeous red velvet fabric is used for curtains in this bedroom and the fabric’s color becomes the focal point. So original – you won’t see another bathroom like this, ever! The shower was made out old cement tiles. HOUSE #2: This house is in a village, one hour from Paris – part country and part city. The house is connected to the barn. Like the previous owners, these owners are in the decorating business. This house is magical – a complete utter mess of clutter – and it lures you trying to discover what is hiding in the corners. This living room sits in the barn part of the house. The barn was sold off separately from the house over 50 years ago. Today, the new owners bought both the barn and house and reconnected them. Here, leaving the barn and entering the house. My favorite picture from this house. In the dining room, such a beautiful backdrop to a collection of urns. Rustic stairs – made of tile treads, wood and iron – topped with two antique bronze finials. There is just so much clutter everywhere! You could look and look and still not see it all. The kitchen with thick concrete countertops. Notice the “crown molding.” Vignettes are everywhere. I love those sconces and lamps. The dining room almost seems quiet compared to the rest of the house. You could take 1/10th of what they own and totally furnish a house with it. They stripped and limed the shelves – turning the library into a bedroom. Another bedroom. I love those portraits – both of them!! They made a medicine chest out of an old door. HOUSE #3 The owners of this house waited 10 years to buy it! Antique dealers and horse traders, their property caters to both sets of customers. I am so crazy about this living room! You could try for ages to get your house in the U.S. to look authentic like this, but you can never get it exactly right! The décor is a mix of French and Swedish. A Swedish Mora clock stands in the corner. That door! That boiserie! That tapestry! That chandelier! Past the living room is the dining room – all French and Swedish in whites and creams. Gorgeous!!!! Notice those doors leading from the living room. The other side of the dining room showing the gorgeous fireplace, mirror and chandelier. Perfection – this picture makes me cry it’s so beautiful. A vignette by the dining room. Great lamps. A view into the breakfast room and kitchen through the wired door. Notice the pantry doors. The kitchen. Love the light fixtures. Unfortunately – no pictures of bedrooms!!!! As you can see, Campagne is no Southern Accents or Veranda. It’s houses aren’t styled in the way we are used to in America. And the French don’t live like we do – where every paper and scrap of mail is tidily put away the minute it’s discarded. They are much more relaxed about their houses than we are. If you like this look, check out the magazine – you’ll love it. If these types of interiors don’t appeal – run to the nearest Architectural Digest. Myself – I like a little of both and I suspect you do too???? THREE GIVEAWAYS ARE COMING!! WATCH FOR DETAILS!!
