Surrey Homes | SH21 | July 2016 | Interiors supplement inside

Above: The master bedroom is warmed by the natural wood of items such as this large pine wardrobe, which was stripped of black paint, a pine dome-lidded
chest and a natural oak chest of drawers. All the furniture came from antiques shops in Rochester, except the upholstered bed, which is by Hypnos
so perfect and the house had so much character.” And it’s
very hard to disagree with either. It was truly a real find.
Like us, Tara set to work with the white paint, the only
difference being that hers was posh white paint – Farrow &
Ball’s Strong White whereas ours merely said ‘white’ on the
tin and left the manufacturer and all else to one’s imagination.
I’d love to say there was absolutely no difference and that
they both did exactly the same job but they didn’t and don’t.
Tara’s Strong White shares the characteristic of so many
F&B colours – depending on the time of day and the angle
at which the light strikes it, there is a subtle difference
in colour and shade. This means that no two walls are
ever identical which, in turn, means there is never any
danger of producing a bland, monochrome space.
From waist to ceiling, the lathe and plaster had
already been removed from the wall separating the
hallway and dining room – maximizing the light from
the latter room’s two sets of French windows.
“The previous owners had already made a good job
of renovating the property, which meant that we haven’t
had to touch the structure of the building,” says Tara.
Apart from the painting and sandblasting, the only
other major job the couple have undertaken has been
the replacement of the kitchen, hallway and dining
room floors with pale Limestone, which again helps
spread the light and interconnects the three spaces. In
the drawing room they have renovated the existing oak
flooring and elsewhere carpeted in natural linen.
The only other major work that has been done is the
garden. In the front there is a formal area of box hedging
When moving from their town property, to a period country home, finding
a house with bountiful natural light was a priority for the couple
80 www.wealdentimes.co.uk