GRAND ILLUSION

Clever design and a wealth of architectural finds make Josephine and Will Maydon’s house look as if it has stood here for centuries

- SARA BIRD

Kitchen

The ‘stone’ mantel in the kitchen was actually made of wood by Josephine’s builder, skimmed with plaster and distressed using Annie Sloan wax.

Pendant and wall lights, all Dowsing & Reynolds

Josephine Maydon is a magpie for old things and her favorite pastime is scouring reclamation yards, so it should come as no surprise to find her living in a Georgian house with Regency and Victorian extensions. Except, gorgeous as her characterful home is, it isn’t period at all. Josephine lives in a cleverly designed new build that looks as though it’s evolved over time, yet it was built over a 12-month time span in 2014.

‘We moved from North Yorkshire in 2009 to be closer to family,’ she explains. ‘My sister was in nearby Moreton Pinkney and we had always walked around this area, setting off across the fields from her house. There was this beautiful spot, a real hidden gem, just outside the village; my brother-in-law suggested we post a letter to the owner asking if they would consider selling. We didn’t know that the owner was in a nursing home and, when they decided to sell, they gave us the first refusal.’

Originally a farm worker’s cottage, the house that stood on the site had been extended over the generations with a mishmash of additions. Most had no foundations and there was little, if any, insulation.