2019-06-01 25 Beautiful Homes

hall

afeaturestaircase,

leadingtothetwo

newlycreated

bedroomsunder

theeaves,brings

a fairy-taletouch

tothehome.

Arianeall-woodspiral

stairkit,from£4,200,

LoftCentre,is

comparable

SITTINGROOM

Thecouplechose

furniturethatwould

chimeharmoniously

withtheoldbeams

andterracottafloor.

rattaneasychairs,

£197each,Selency,

areofthisstyle.

SimilarAubussonrug,

priceonrequest,

London house

W

henSophiedeBajac’s

husband,Pierre,asked

hertoviewa former

huntinglodgeona large

estateinthePérigordregionofFrance,she

wasdubiousabouttheidea.‘I wasn’tsure

thatweneededa housewithsomuchland,

butthemomentI sawit,I wasunderits

spell,’shesays.‘Thelocationis reallyspecial,

asis thehouseitself,althoughatthetimeit

waspartlyovergrownandina poorstate.’

Thecouplealsoowna flatinBordeaux,

anhour’sdriveaway,andformanyyears

theyhadowneda seasidevillainCap

Ferret.‘Weweregettingtiredofthe

summercrowdsandmyhusbandcraved

peaceandquiet,’saysSophie.‘Webothlove

walkingandwewanteda placewherewe

coulddothiswithoutencounteringhordes

ofpeople.We’resurroundedbyforestand

thereis a largelakesowealsohavea little

boatthatwecangooffexploringin,’she

says.‘Therearelotsofwaterbirds and

animals– it’squitemagical.’

Thecoupleknowverylittleaboutthe

historyofthelodge,althoughtheybelieve

it maydatetotheearly19thcentury.Their

allyinitsextensiverenovationwasCap

Ferret-basedinteriordesignerNicole

Joinau,whohadworkedontheirformer

coastalhomeaswellastheircityflat.

‘Nicoleknowsmystyleverywellbynow

andI’ddescribeourrelationshipas

symbiotic,’saysSophie.Nicolebroughtwith

hera teamthatsheregularlyworkswith,

includingarchitectSandrineMercurioand

landscapedesignerArnaudGallou.

Keytothecouple’sapproachto

transforming the lodge’s interior has been

12 | 25bhjune 2019