{"id":19552,"date":"2025-07-24T05:17:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-24T05:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/19552\/"},"modified":"2025-07-24T05:17:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-24T05:17:14","slug":"this-whimsical-georgian-house-is-a-storybook-escape","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/19552\/","title":{"rendered":"This Whimsical Georgian House Is a Storybook Escape"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a particular magic to the English countryside<\/a> in the summer\u2014patchwork fields roll toward the sunlit horizon, hedgerows burst with wildflowers<\/a>, and winding lanes meander past quiet stone cottages<\/a>. Life here moves at a gentler pace, marked by morning market visits and lingering garden<\/a> lunches under expansive blue skies. It was this easy, idyllic rhythm that inspired a family of five to purchase a three-story, five bedroom Georgian house in Devon as a summer retreat from their busy lives in London.<\/p>\n

They envisioned a home that felt joyful, playful, and rich with color. Naturally, British designer Nicola Harding<\/a>, who worked on their London residence in 2020, came to mind. \u201cThey are the most lovely family, full of personality,\u201d says Harding. \u201cThe brief for this holiday home was totally irresistible: the wife wanted the feeling of love and joy to radiate through it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"nicolaCatherine Gratwicke<\/p>\n

The dining area features chairs by Maison Drucker, an antique dining table from Lorfords, and a pendant light from Agapanthus Interiors.<\/p>\n

But before the fun began, some structural rethinking was required. \u201cThe original part of the house was a rabbit warren of intimate little spaces, while a newer addition had a vast open-plan layout,\u201d Harding says. \u201cWe needed to get them to sit comfortably next to each other and feel cohesive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harding collaborated with Patrick Kinmonth, International Editor at Large for World of Interiors, to add a glass extension that links the old house to a former stable block, wrapping around the entry and branching off the kitchen. The result is a home that gracefully merges old and new. The entry features a rough stone wall inhabited by a reclaimed wood dresser from an old English farmhouse, overseen by a modern glass ceiling and cheeky neon sign. Further in, a vast space is broken up into nooks: a kitchen, dining, and lounge area that opens into the sun-filled orangery.<\/p>\n

Step Inside This English Countryside Retreat\"house\"Open Gallery\"\"<\/p>\n

When it came to infusing personality, Harding didn’t hold back. \u201cThese clients are very modest people\u2014they\u2019re not grand or ostentatious,\u201d Harding says. \u201cEven though the house is large and the architecture quite formal, our goal was to make it feel playful and intimate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harding knows what it means to make a house feel like home. As the daughter of a helicopter pilot, she moved frequently, living in the U.S., Germany, and across the UK. \u201cCreating that feeling of home for myself became hugely important,\u201d she says\u2014this sentiment now defines her approach to every project.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love when a house feels like it\u2019s evolved over time, with pieces added from holidays or given by friends,\u201d Harding says. \u201cThat kind of happenstance creates a space that feels relaxed, layered, and truly lived-in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"harding\"Catherine Gratwicke<\/p>\n

The kitchen walls are painted in Edward Bulmer\u2019s Nicaragua, while the ceiling features Pure and Original\u2019s Old Rose. The oven nook tiles are by Emery et Cie and the counter stools are from Howe London.<\/p>\n

The kitchen is awash in a dusty pink, the shade Nicaragua by Edward Bulmer<\/a>, anchored by a dramatic arch tiled in sultry oxblood red. Nearby, a large scrub pine clubhouse table is surrounded by sky-blue French chairs with red accents (in the orangery, you\u2019ll see those chairs in reversed colorways). Velvet furniture in mustard and navy add bold moments, grounded by an ashy gray reclaimed stone fireplace.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, color is that language of feeling within a space,\u201d Harding says. \u201cIt’s the degree of contrast that really brings a room to life.\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019s little sign of standard-issue kitchen appliances\u2014the sink is tucked into a vintage dresser, and the fridge is hidden behind antique cabinetry. \u201cIt feels more like a cherished loft than a utilitarian cooking space,\u201d Harding notes, \u201cwith huge windows framing the countryside and sunlight pouring in all day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Upstairs, the twin boys\u2019 room is a riot of playful prints. The wallpaper is scattered with clovers\u2014some lucky, some not\u2014and the beds are crowned with striped headboards in aqua and brown. Bright yellow nightstands complete the cheerful scene.<\/p>\n

\"harding\"Catherine Gratwicke<\/p>\n

In the colorful kids\u2019 bedroom, the headboard and valance and their fabrics are by NiX, the fabric for the headboard trim is by Dedar, and the bedside tables are by GeorgieWykeham. The cushions are from Penny Worral and Ferm Living and the wallpaper is Svenskt Tenn. <\/p>\n

In contrast, the primary bedroom is quiet and romantic. A four-poster bed is draped in sheer fabric against walls painted in the same whisper-soft pink as the kitchen. There are almost no hard edges\u2014bedside tables are skirted in the same chocolate-striped fabric found in the boys\u2019 room, topped with antique lamps. Underfoot, a hand-dyed cotton dhurrie in subtle, uneven tones adds depth and a sense of age.<\/p>\n

For this family, the Devon retreat is more than just a getaway\u2014it\u2019s a living expression of who they are and how they want to live: lighthearted, connected, and fully at ease.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was about creating a space where love lives in the walls,\u201d Harding says. \u201cAnd I think you can feel that the moment you walk in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Rachel Silva is the associate digital editor at ELLE DECOR, where she covers all things design, architecture, and lifestyle. She also oversees the publication\u2019s feature article coverage, and is, at any moment, knee-deep in an investigation on everything from the best spa gifts<\/a> to the best faux florals<\/a> on the internet right now. She has more than 16 years of experience in editorial, working as a photo assignment editor at Time and acting as the president of Women in Media in NYC. She went to Columbia Journalism School, and her work has been nominated for awards from ASME, the Society of Publication Designers, and World Press Photo.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There\u2019s a particular magic to the English countryside in the summer\u2014patchwork fields roll toward the sunlit horizon, hedgerows…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19553,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[6225,6485,6486,9262,12499,1120,12497,96,380,12498,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-19552","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-content-type-feature","12":"tag-contentid-63f55d71-eb17-453a-b50a-a3db32726eb8","13":"tag-design","14":"tag-displaytype-long-form-article","15":"tag-entertainment","16":"tag-locale-us","17":"tag-shorttitle-this-georgian-house-is-straight-out-of-a-fairytale","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom","20":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19552"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19552\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}