Heart Home magazine Issue 12 - June 2014 | Page 21

“We’ve kept the walls
uncluttered and just
have a few shelves for
art work and photos in
the sitting room”

But Louisa has a good support network
around her, not least of which has come
from the village community. “Most of
the trades we used were recommended
by locals,” she explains. “While we were
deciding what to do, the builder who lives
on our lane brought round about 15 acrow
supports to keep the floor from caving in,
which was a lovely preview of the amazing
community spirit in the village.”
Fourteen months into the project and
Louisa and Dan have been able to move
out of Army barracks and into their new
home, while the renovation continues in
earnest. Despite blowing the budget early
on, the couple have no regrets about their
decision to restore the old cottage to its
former glory, with Louisa finding much
of her inspiration for the interior design
from the quirkiness of the building itself.
She says: “uncovering the beams in the
reception rooms was an amazing find and
I wanted to show those off as much as
possible so we’ve kept the walls uncluttered
and just have a few shelves for art work
and photos in the sitting room”.