Having resolved a disjointed layout, Alison Nicholls’ next task was to introduce colour and a sense of fun to her home
Alison Nicholls is the first to admit that she and her husband, James, made some mistakes when they embarked on building a new home in the Suffolk countryside 15 years ago. ‘There was originally a Sixties bungalow on the four-acre plot, which we decided to demolish, but we were faced with tight planning rules,’ Alison explains. ‘The design was a compromise as it needed to look like a farmhouse attached to barn-type dwellings. We also had to excavate at the back of the house to gain a full second storey while keeping the roof height the same.’
What the couple and their architect devised was a large, horseshoe-shaped layout that wrapped around a courtyard. ‘When we finally moved in, in 2006, we quickly realised that we were only really using one wing of the house, where the kitchen was situated,’ recalls Alison, who has three grown-up daughters from a former marriage, as well as a 12-year-old daughter, Charlotte, with James. ‘We had a large playroom and study but because it was at the opposite end of the house to the kitchen, the girls never went there,’ she adds.
This story is from the April 2019 edition of 25 Beautiful Homes.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April 2019 edition of 25 Beautiful Homes.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
A Labour of Love
Morgan Scott-Murch and her husband Jon worked hard to turn bedsits into a beautiful home
LIGHT relief
Leila and Ali Mestiri called in the experts to modernise their dated period property and make it bright and beautiful
Grand ambition
Making changes to a listed historic house comes with many challenges, but that didn't stop Penny and Richard Ballard achieving their dreams
COUNTRY calling
Anita and Tom Storrar have cleverly enhanced their pretty stone cottage in the North York Moors National Park, which is the focal point of their idyllic family life
CUSTOM FIT
A contemporary Huf Haus proved to be the ideal home for David and Greta Iredale to showcase their love of mid-century design
Urban OASIS
Interior designer Ruchi A. Mohan was well placed to turn a dated and compact New York City apartment into a calm, cool and collected abode
Best laid plans
A renovation and significant extension have future-proofed Rossella and Tim van der Weyden's Victorian terrace for years to come
AT ONE with nature
The couple who built this home on the outskirts of Antwerp were influenced by their experience of living in Japan, so the inside is as peaceful as the outside
Dream come true
Moving from a semi to a detached period house in need of some care was a happy adventure for Am and Aman Hayer
CLEAR VISION
Katie and Andrew Probert couldn't resist the chance to buy a Victorian doer-upper on a street they'd always wanted to live on