Wealden Times | WT176 | October 2016 | Kitchen & Bathroom supplement inside

Previous page: The four-foot-high framed poster of Gary
Cooper is from McCully & Crane Above: The bed in the master
bedroom has been raised to be on a level with the windows
looking south over the fields to the sea. The headboard and
cushions were designed by Francesca, part of a new range she
is now developing. Right: Chest from Hunter Jones, rug from
Hunter Jones, painting from Lion Street Store The lamp, made
from an old wooden-cased voltmeter, is from McCully & Crane
On the walls are works by two Rye artists – mermaids by
Richard Adams and a delicate ladybird drawing by Lincoln
Taber. Flanking the window are two galvanised steel nautical
lights by Cox & Cox. “There are odd nods to the seaside
here and there,” says Francesca, “but nothing too obvious
– I didn’t want to start going down the seashell route.”
Also delightfully conspicuous by its absence is any evidence
of The Dead Stuffed Things School of Interior Design. True,
there is a stag’s head above the woodburner in the living area
but this is a lovely wood carving from Eras of Style in Bexhill.
The woodburner is set into a central chimney that is
all that is left of the original wall separating the front
and rear rooms. “It was the most expensive item in
the house to buy and to install,” says Francesca, “but
I really wanted to make sure that the house was a real
home for all seasons and it certainly does its job.”
The fireplace is now open from both sides of the chimney,
heating and cheering both the sitting room area and the
kitchen behind. The sofa is from made.com and the white
painted chest – as many other objects of desire around
the house – from McCully & Crane in Rye, owned by
Marcus Crane, who you will remember was Francesca’s
partner in the renaissance of Goodnestone Park.
113 wealdentimes.co.uk