When the custodians of this late 19th-century cottage, Viscount and Viscountess Newport, called upon Emma Ainscough to redesign the space, they gave her a blank slate upon which to draw. The house had been occupied by various renters and dwellers across the past two decades and needed extensive repairs to ensure it could 'stand up to the rigours of rural life.' Using the lessons she learnt at Studio Ashby, Emma reconfigured and redesigned Charlotte's Folly (named after the daughter of the 2nd Earl of Bradford), transforming it into the vibrant space we see today.
In the living room
The main living room is decidedly more neutral than the rest of the house, with walls painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘Slipper Satin’. With the garden accessible out of the french doors and the vibrant kitchen lying to the other side, the room needed to bridge the two spaces carefully.
In the master bedroom
‘[I] didn’t want there to be an obvious main bedroom and wanted them to all offer a wonderful experience,’ says Emma, meaning pattern, colour and fun had to be doled out evenly between the rooms. Here, she has chosen Farrow & Ball's ‘Dimity’ as a calm backdrop for a headboard upholstered in Le Manach's ‘Palmyre’ fabric.
In the blue bedroom
In this theatrical bedroom, a bed nook has been created through the addition of a bespoke arch detail and heavy curtains that close off the space. The wallpaper is the ‘Folies Bergère’ pattern by Howe at 36 Bourne Street in blue ribbon and the headboard and cushions are bespoke.
In the green bedroom
This verdant twin bedroom, which can be converted into a double with ease, has walls adorned in Living Quarters' ‘Creeping Toadflax’ pattern, with woodwork painted in Edward Bulmer's ‘Pea Green’. Here, a vintage dressing table has been reupholstered in a green stripe fabric from The Cloth Shop, with a matching stool. Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler's ‘Squiggle’ fabric was used for the blind.
In the dining room
Papered in Hamilton Weston's ‘Brown Paper Stripe’ in off white, the dining room is a study in warm neutrals. As this house is available as a holiday let, the dining room provides the perfect backdrop to a charming dinner party with friends and family. Wall lights from Soho Home sit out of shot.
emmaainscough.com | @emma__ainscough
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