Wealden Times | WT244 | September 2022 | Winter Interiors Supplement inside

Above: The extension opens straight into the courtyard garden. A mural by Avalana Design runs the length of
the back wall, with the others painted in chalky finish Rust-Oleum paint, giving a textured finish
sofa that belonged to Calum’s mum – a wedding gift from
his father to his mother. She has found some great bargains
on eBay too, including an oxblood leather sofa and chair
now in residence in the front room and some bone inlay
furniture originally from Graham & Green. The antique
dining table was bought for £6 at Denhams auction house.
“I have always liked period features and period properties,”
she says. “I really enjoy mixing the old with the new. And
I’m not too girly – I’ve probably got more of a masculine
taste. The moody colours are definitely influenced by
Abigail Ahern. I like her eclectic designs and her use of
texture. I like to do the rooms dark, especially where
there are high ceilings to make shadows. It’s really cosy
too, when it’s dark outside. Like a members club.”
Accent colours work really well against dark backgrounds,
the bright tones of teal and pink lighten the mood.
There is warmth in the dark wall colour, making the
atmosphere intimate, rather than gloomy and oppressive.
Jen has been clever with the window treatment in the
living room, creating a means of keeping privacy – letting in
the light, but keeping with the theme of the room, she has
mixed voile curtains with plain grey – voile across the whole
window would have been too much white in the room.
The artistic trait is strong on both sides of this family.
Many of the pictures adorning the living room were painted
by Calum’s mother, the artist Lynn MacLeay; her delicate
and vibrant paintings of beetles and plants adding a rich
layer of interest and fitting perfectly into the theme.
There’s a distinctly wordly feel in the dining room
area, where the accents are rattan, large ferns and the
intricate bone inlay sideboard, originally from Graham
& Green, that Jen bought for a snip on eBay.
Upstairs there’s a spacious landing and a surprise.
One of the bedrooms has been turned into an opulent
cinema room, complete with a mini bar, bespoke chairs
and ottomans that can double up as a sofa or beds.
These exactly match the colour on the walls, it is a very
inviting and comfortable looking room. “Yes, we spent
a lot of time in here during lockdown,” Jen laughs.
Another of the bedrooms has been turned into a
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