An 18th-century dairy on the Dorset coast becomes an enchanting weekend retreat
Dorset is home to some of England’s loveliest coastline, and this 18th-century house is beautifully positioned to take advantage of it. Once the dairy to a grand estate, it is perched high above the sea with a path down the cliffs, and a sub-tropical garden that overlooks the water. Both the situation and the house had a fairy-tale appeal for its new owners, who called in Henriette von Stockhausen of VSP Interiors to redesign the rooms. “It’s a bit of a wild location, but terribly romantic” she says.
The house had been more or less modernised by its previous occupants, but still retained plenty of charm and original details from its days as a working dairy, such as the drainage channels, stone sink and Delft tiles in what is now a summer sitting room. “The owners wanted to leave it as much as possible in the way that they found it,” explains Henriette. “They didn’t want to touch the structure of the house, so we worked around all the quirks. It’s not their main residence, so we were able to be very flexible.”
There was some work to be done, of course. “The house is right next to a lake, and it’s lower than the lake, so when our client took it over, it was terribly damp,” says Henriette. The first task, therefore, was to dry it all out, insulate it properly and put in new floors and panelling, making it habitable and cosy. “That was a big hurdle–it was incredibly time-consuming and complicated,” she continues. But once that was done, the decoration was a more straightforward matter.
“The family uses this house as a weekend retreat–it’s really a place to get away,” Henriette says. “They wanted it to be comfortable and simple, and to avoid complications and over-decoration. In some spaces you can just have too much–too many fabrics, too many frills. Instead we wanted to use a few amazing things that were carefully chosen, and only as much of them as we really needed. For example, where we could do blinds instead of curtains, we did blinds, and made sure always to take the more minimal approach.”
As an example of this low-intervention approach, the owners wanted to keep the charmingly old-fashioned kitchen, so Henriette and her team renovated it, put a new marble counter in, added in a slim island to provide more storage. They painted it in a soft, inviting yellow, custom mixed for the space by Rose of Jericho.
In most of the other rooms, a few key exquisite fabrics anchor each scheme. “Our client loves antique fabrics,” Henriette explains. “We also used a lot of Chelsea Textiles and had some custom-embroidered fabrics made.” These were set against a backdrop of more custom colours by Rose of Jericho. “The light is unique in this house, so that off the shelf colours don’t work. We wanted that old-fashioned chalky feel to them.”
In a calm and simple interior like this, the art on the walls is absolutely crucial, and on this project, Henriette hit the jackpot. “The client’s father is an art dealer,” she explains, “and she has an incredible collection of art. We were very lucky to work with all her pieces, and there was fortunately enough for the whole house!” In the former dairy, a long and narrow space with the drainage channels for whey on each side, Henriette used a set of 24 hand-coloured bird prints, hanging them above the picture rail as well as below. “When you’re standing in that room it just looks incredible. They really lift the ceiling up because we hung them all the way to the top.” The room is now an elegant summer sitting room, with the old dairy work counter now serving as a bar, and french doors opening onto the terrace and fire pit outside. In colder weather, the family tends to spend more time in the library, with its woodburner and squashy sofa creating a cosy atmosphere. The layout is designed to be flexible; the owners wanted to be able to use this as an informal dining room, so sometimes they bring in a small round dining table for dinners en famille, moving the small armchairs out of the way.
Upstairs, the bedrooms are pared-back and distinctly restful. Wallpaper makes an appearance in the daughter’s room–a leafy Marthe Armitage print that gives the feeling of a treehouse in the attic space. Tongue and groove panelling lends a laid-back rusticity, while antique rugs and more of the owner’s beautiful paintings unify the whole of these floors. No space is overcrowded with possessions; there are storage ottomans for hiding away spare bedding, but the whole is wonderfully uncluttered.
“The time the family spends there,” concludes Henriette, “is about going back to nature, spending as much time as possible outside, and enjoying a slower life. The interior reflects that: it’s simple and beautiful, but there is nothing extra.”
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Simon Brown2/24The paint colour in the sitting room is Edward Bulmer's ‘Rose Tinted White’ mixed to 40%. The sofa is from Lorfords, adorned with cushions in a mixture of antique fabrics and Robert Kime patterns; the side table is also from Robert Kime, with a lamp by Max Rollitt on top.
Simon Brown3/24A side chair in an antique French linen from Robert Kime is decorated with a cushion in an antique fabric from Susan Deliss. An ottoman covered in an antique needlepoint serves as a centrepiece. The curtains are in Robert Kime's ‘Opium Poppy Faded.’
Simon Brown4/24An antique chair from Max Rollitt stands next to the woodburner. The red bench in front of the woodburner is covered in a Claremont velvet.
Simon Upton5/24The two antique chairs are covered in Parker & Jules' ‘Trees’ fabric. The cushions are covered in Robert Kime's Avignon Stripe in blue. The leaf sconce is from Cox London, and a lampshade from Nina Campbell stands on a lamp by Max Rollitt. Antique fabrics from the owner's collection hang over the backs of the chairs.
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Simon Brown7/24The pendant light in the dining area is by Beata Heuman.
Simon Brown8/24The tablecloth is a custom piece from Chelsea Textiles.
Simon Upton9/24The client's collection of antique botanical prints hangs over the bookshelves.
Simon Brown10/24The study is papered in Braquenié's ‘Bengali’ pattern from Pierre Frey. The blind fabric is in Robert Kime's ‘Larsson Linen’ in cherry.
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Simon Brown12/24The main bedroom has a headboard in Guy Goodfellow's Fez Weave. The cushions are from Chelsea Textiles, with the centre one in Namy Samay's ‘Rouen’ flamestitch, while the bedspread is from Aleta. The ottoman is covered in Lisa Fine Textiles' ‘Pandora’.
Simon Upton13/24Lisa Fine Textiles' ‘Pandora’ appears again on the blind, while the window seat is covered in Robert Kime's ‘Avignon Stripe’.
Simon Brown14/24The bathroom is papered in Robert Kime's ‘Grille’ in sage. The Hector Finch wall lights are topped with pierced lampshades from Robert Kime.
Simon Brown15/24A small-scale wallpaper adds interest to this bedroom. The bed is covered in an antique quilt from Brigitte Singh.
Simon Brown16/24The blind is in Robert Kime's ‘Ardagh.’
Simon Brown17/24The daughter's bedroom has wallpaper and headboards in Marthe Armitage's ‘Chestnut’ pattern. Quilts from Aleta and an antique table add depth to the scheme.
Simon Brown18/24This spare bedroom is panelled and papered in Robert Kime's ‘Gilly Flower’ pattern, complemented by antique quilts and cushions.
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