Houzz Tour: Country Style With a Chic Twist in the Cotswolds
A neutral colour palette teamed with warm textiles and traditional furniture creates an elegant yet relaxed and cosy family home
Being trusted by a client to carry out your own vision for a home with little interference is about as good as it gets for interior designers. When Emma Sims Hilditch was approached by her clients – a family with eight children – to redesign their manor house in the Cotswolds, she heard the words every designer hopes for. After visiting Emma’s home, the mother of the family said, ‘If you can make it like this, I’ll be happy.’
When they bought the property, it hadn’t been updated in decades. ‘It was very dated,’ says Emma, ‘very 1970s, with lots of swags and tails, fabric wallcoverings and dark colours.’ A lot of work needed to be done, from reconfiguring the layout to create room for a large kitchen, to more cosmetic but still substantial changes.
The designer worked to create somewhere the children could feel relaxed, but that maintained an element of chic, as her clients often host friends. ‘I wanted to give it a lovely relaxed, country house feel, but in a contemporary way,’ explains Emma. Taking the look from shiny paint effects and austere interiors to light and comfortable spaces, the two-year project transformed the old manor house into a space the family could call home.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here A family of 10
Size 7 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms
Location Oxfordshire
Designer Emma Sims Hilditch of Sims Hilditch
When they bought the property, it hadn’t been updated in decades. ‘It was very dated,’ says Emma, ‘very 1970s, with lots of swags and tails, fabric wallcoverings and dark colours.’ A lot of work needed to be done, from reconfiguring the layout to create room for a large kitchen, to more cosmetic but still substantial changes.
The designer worked to create somewhere the children could feel relaxed, but that maintained an element of chic, as her clients often host friends. ‘I wanted to give it a lovely relaxed, country house feel, but in a contemporary way,’ explains Emma. Taking the look from shiny paint effects and austere interiors to light and comfortable spaces, the two-year project transformed the old manor house into a space the family could call home.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here A family of 10
Size 7 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms
Location Oxfordshire
Designer Emma Sims Hilditch of Sims Hilditch
The hallway leads on to a snug sitting room, which leads on to a more formal drawing room. ‘The sitting room had to be cosy,’ explains Emma. It’s a room for the whole family that oozes comfort and warmth. From the sisal carpet to the wool-upholstered sofas, the look is relaxed and comfortable with an air of rustic grandeur.
The panelling had previously been imposing dark wood, so Emma painted it pale green to bring light into the room. A large bookcase gives weight to the space.
Panelling painted in Moss by Neptune. Sofas, George Smith; upholstered in fabric from Moon. Bookcase; lamps, all Flamant. Console table, Neptune.
See more on country style
The panelling had previously been imposing dark wood, so Emma painted it pale green to bring light into the room. A large bookcase gives weight to the space.
Panelling painted in Moss by Neptune. Sofas, George Smith; upholstered in fabric from Moon. Bookcase; lamps, all Flamant. Console table, Neptune.
See more on country style
On from the sitting room, the drawing room is designed to be a grown-up zone where the kids don’t venture. ‘We wanted it to be elegant, calm and restful,’ Emma explains. The space had previously had wooden pelmets on the windows and plaster on the ceiling and was rather horrible, according to Emma. ‘We cleaned it all down, keeping only the original features, such as the stone mullions and fireplaces,’ she says.
All of the furniture was designed by Sims Hilditch and upholstered in fabrics from Romo, Mark Alexander and Libeco. The room has two fireplaces. ‘The only way we could configure the room was to create two separate seating areas and focus them on the fireplaces,’ Emma explains.
Table lamp, Vaughan. Oak table and chairs, Neptune. Linen curtain fabric, Mark Alexander.
All of the furniture was designed by Sims Hilditch and upholstered in fabrics from Romo, Mark Alexander and Libeco. The room has two fireplaces. ‘The only way we could configure the room was to create two separate seating areas and focus them on the fireplaces,’ Emma explains.
Table lamp, Vaughan. Oak table and chairs, Neptune. Linen curtain fabric, Mark Alexander.
One of the most important changes Emma made was to open up two separate rooms – a small kitchen and a study – to create a large kitchen and breakfast area. The family wanted a space where they could sit around and have breakfast together at the breakfast bar, no mean feat for a family of 10!
‘The room is quite dark, so we wanted to bring light in and bounce it around,’ says Emma. She went for a fresh and spring-like atmosphere, with a chunky cashmere white granite worktop, limestone floors and a pale colour palette.
Suffolk kitchen, Neptune. Limestone tiles, Mandarin Stone. Cabinet painted in Lily, Neptune. Wall painted in Snow, Neptune. Hector pendant lights, Original BTC at John Lewis.
‘The room is quite dark, so we wanted to bring light in and bounce it around,’ says Emma. She went for a fresh and spring-like atmosphere, with a chunky cashmere white granite worktop, limestone floors and a pale colour palette.
Suffolk kitchen, Neptune. Limestone tiles, Mandarin Stone. Cabinet painted in Lily, Neptune. Wall painted in Snow, Neptune. Hector pendant lights, Original BTC at John Lewis.
In the dining room, Emma wanted to create more of a grand feeling, so she went for a slightly darker paint colour than in the kitchen to give the space a little more importance. She found the old dresser in an antiques shop and had it repaired and painted white.
In order to create enough space for the entire family to be able to sit and have supper together, Emma had to join two dining tables together. The table can fit 10 people comfortably, making entertaining a breeze.
Oak flooring, Trunk Flooring. Dining table, Flamant. Dresser painted in Snow, Neptune. Dining chairs, similar from Neptune. Chandelier, Vaughan.
Tour a lakeside manor house in Wiltshire
In order to create enough space for the entire family to be able to sit and have supper together, Emma had to join two dining tables together. The table can fit 10 people comfortably, making entertaining a breeze.
Oak flooring, Trunk Flooring. Dining table, Flamant. Dresser painted in Snow, Neptune. Dining chairs, similar from Neptune. Chandelier, Vaughan.
Tour a lakeside manor house in Wiltshire
Emma supplied everything for this home, right down to the bed linen. She found this selection of plates in different shops. ‘It’s sort of a pick and mix,’ she says. ‘We stuck them to the walls using nails, safety pins and some Araldite.’ The console table is bespoke by Sims Hilditch with a Carrara marble worktop for some added elegance.
Table lamp, Flamant.
Table lamp, Flamant.
Through a short corridor is a boot room, for which Emma chose a classic style. ‘We went for tongue and groove panelling because it’s so characteristic of boot rooms,’ she says. The panelling goes all the way around the room, with a built-in bench on the other side of the room so the children can sit down while they lace up.
The flooring is in fact very thin tiles formed from the bricks of old Polish buildings.
Shelving, Neptune. Panelling painted in Lily, Neptune. Flooring can be bought from Sims Hilditch.
The flooring is in fact very thin tiles formed from the bricks of old Polish buildings.
Shelving, Neptune. Panelling painted in Lily, Neptune. Flooring can be bought from Sims Hilditch.
With so many children, the parents needed a space to which they could escape. Their master suite includes a bedroom, a sitting room and an en-suite bathroom. An emperor-sized bed was part of the brief, and was made bespoke by Sims Hilditch in fabric from de Le Cuona. It has small LED nickel reading lights either side – you can purchase similar ones from Mr Light.
‘We wanted to go for a very soft palette in this room,’ Emma explains. The curtains are a lovely paisley wool in a soft dove grey and mauve colour to enhance the opulent feel of the space.
Bedside chests, Flamant. Wall lights, Porta Romana. Chair, antique, upholstered in linen from GP & J Baker.
‘We wanted to go for a very soft palette in this room,’ Emma explains. The curtains are a lovely paisley wool in a soft dove grey and mauve colour to enhance the opulent feel of the space.
Bedside chests, Flamant. Wall lights, Porta Romana. Chair, antique, upholstered in linen from GP & J Baker.
From the bedroom, you walk through a small corridor into a sitting room, and the bathroom then comes off this room. A wood burner keeps the room cosy.
Also on this first floor are two children’s bedrooms joined by a bathroom.
Also on this first floor are two children’s bedrooms joined by a bathroom.
The panelling was already in place in the sitting room, and was painted in Lily by Neptune to give it a contemporary update. Emma found the sofa in an antiques store, and used it as the starting point for the curtain fabric, which is a soft lilac colour.
Scatter cushions, de Le Cuona. Lamps, Neptune. Wall lights, Porta Romana.
Scatter cushions, de Le Cuona. Lamps, Neptune. Wall lights, Porta Romana.
To keep up the restful atmosphere of the master suite, Emma wanted to create a spa-worthy bathroom where the parents could really relax. The curtains add to the hotel feel.
An island in the centre of the room serves multiple purposes, acting as a storage solution, a console table for make-up and other toiletries, and a room divider between the basins and bath.
Shower tiles, Marlborough Tiles. Sanitaryware, Lefroy Brooks. Marlborough bath, Victoria & Albert.
Shower tiles, Marlborough Tiles. Sanitaryware, Lefroy Brooks. Marlborough bath, Victoria & Albert.
On the second floor of the house are four further bedrooms and two bathrooms. The bathrooms are Jack and Jill rooms – each shared by two bedrooms on either side.
This room is shared by two of the girls in the family. It’s quite a small room in the attic, so Emma kept it pale. ‘I wanted it to be clean and crisp, light and airy,’ she says.
Beds, antiques from The French House. Headboard fabric, Alexandra by Sims Hilditch. Hector wall lights, Original BTC at John Lewis. Walls painted in Snow, Neptune. Eiderdowns in Chelsea Textiles Check. Tables and lamps, Neptune.
TELL US…
What do you like about this manor house? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
This room is shared by two of the girls in the family. It’s quite a small room in the attic, so Emma kept it pale. ‘I wanted it to be clean and crisp, light and airy,’ she says.
Beds, antiques from The French House. Headboard fabric, Alexandra by Sims Hilditch. Hector wall lights, Original BTC at John Lewis. Walls painted in Snow, Neptune. Eiderdowns in Chelsea Textiles Check. Tables and lamps, Neptune.
TELL US…
What do you like about this manor house? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
The country feel really comes out as soon as you step through the (original) front door, with wicker baskets brimming with logs for the numerous fires in the home.
Log baskets, Neptune. Light, Vaughan. Walls painted in Fine Mahogany, Neptune.