Home » Sunday » Home and Design
Charmingly rustic cottage in paradise
Print Edition
IN a world where houses with elaborate architecture often steal the spotlight, this Little Nut Cottage in the heart of England’s beautiful Lake District is charming in its simplicity.
And this lovingly restored slate quarryman’s cottage is renowned interior designer Katharine Pooley’s ideal retreat year round.
Pooley and her family, based in London, travel to the idyllic English village of Elterwater often, and spend quality time in their newly completed Little Nut Cottage beside Lake Elter Water at the foot of Langdale Valley.
The dramatic mountains were once the site of gunpowder mines and slate quarries in use from the Napoleonic Wars until the early 20th century.
Pooley was impressed by the beauty of the stonework — and the topography’s beautiful depth of color — when she first visited Elterwater in 2016. She had her heart set on buying one of these unusual properties, and when the opportunity arose in 2019 to own one of the original quarryman’s cottages, she leaped at the chance.
It was a painstaking two-year restoration project.
“The original stone exterior gives the house its identity, and I wouldn’t want to change that. The cottage has small proportions, so we needed to work hard on the design to get it to feel spacious, fitting everything and having storage, which is key,” Pooley said.
For years, people could rent the house for holidays, so it was tired. The roof slates needed relaying to sort out a small moisture problem.
“But none of that concerned me,” she said.
This particular restoration project took place during the winter of 2020/2021, so COVID-19 restrictions presented a challenge Pooley’s family was able to work through.
“It’s an old stone cottage which has stood for 200 years, so we anticipated that extra work would crop up once the house was stripped out and properly inspected. There wasn’t much, though, as it was well built and had been cared for,” she said.
The restoration work has proven to be a labor of love. Every detail and finish have been true to the building’s original fabric and location, while updating it to suit modern family living.
The craftsmanship of local laborers, stonemasons, garden designers and artisans was central to Pooley’s vision.
“We did stay authentic in terms of the house’s exterior and the gardens. I wanted it to be quintessentially Lake District. The interior has a blend of materials and warmth which reflect the local area whilst being sophisticated and well designed,” she said.
With its small proportions inside, she knew the cozy feel was the best angle.
“When you’re on holiday, you want to feel relaxed and detached from the world a bit,” she said. “I went for earthy tones, as they are proven to be calming.”
On the ground floor, Pooley has ensured all practical needs are met in the boot room and kitchen, which was custom built by English joiner Humphrey Munson. The boot room is painted in soft gray blue and well-ordered with details. The light gray kitchen overlooks the front of the property, with every detail beautifully considered — from the embroidered roman blinds by Victoria Bain to the burnished bronze ironmongery.
Adjacent to the kitchen, the red-and-blue accented open-plan living room is comfortable and cozy, featuring a limestone and oak fireplace with pretty recessed herringbone tiles and a cream log-burning stove. The centerpiece of the dining room is a limed oak table from Rick Baker, sculptural chairs from Chaplins and a faceted glass pendant overhead from Jonathan Browning.
The second floor belongs to the bedrooms. The master bedroom is in a soft blue tone that creates a memorably inviting retreat, with a simple oak-framed four poster bed set against an installation of hand-sculpted porcelain flowers by Artisan Studios.
The master bedroom has been furnished with a hand-painted roll top bath from Holloways of Ludlow. Set against exquisitely detailed mosaic tiles from Waterworks and positioned below a vivid green river scene painting by Richard Cook, it is a space for tranquility and reflection.
The bedroom for Pooley’s two sons is snug with shades of vibrant orange. A collection of straw hats decorates one wall, and wooden wall sculptures are an unexpected fun detail.
She selected her favorite British suppliers and creatives for the furnishings. Soft-toned rugs from Sinclair Till and furniture from Soane London punctuate the space, while fabrics sourced from Colefax and Fowler, Holland & Sherry, Pierre Frey and C&C MIlano create a layered and intimate feel.
Behind the cottage, a terraced garden was created on the hillside and planted with laurel and lilac. With a hot tub, lounge sitting area, barbecue grill and dining areas, this is the perfect place to relax and admire the majestic surrounding landscape.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
