2019-06-01 25 Beautiful Homes

country house | 25bh

SittingRoom

Rachelhaschosena bold,

colourfulpaletteforthis

welcomingspace.

leeJofaCatalinaSuzani,

£398m,GrahamSanderson

interiors,isa similarfabric

for a footstool

DiningaRea
acontemporarytable,
traditionalupholstered
chairsandvibrantartwork
makeaneclecticmix.
Fora similardiningtable,
£5,995,tryChaplins.Titan
pendantlight,£259,original
F BTC, is a close match

indinga locationthatthewholefamilycouldcall

homebroughtRachelLyle,herpartnerAndrew

Sherlock,andtheirfourchildrentoa secluded,rural

settingintheCotswolds.‘WhenwefirstmetI was

livinginScotlandwithmythreechildren,Tilly,now19,

Jack,18,andLuca,11,whileAndrewlivedinLondon,’says

Rachel.‘Ouraimwastofinda basesuitableforusalland

wechoseOxfordshireasAndrewknewtheareawell.’

Fortuitously,thefamilyheardofa largefarmhouse

availabletorent.‘Weweresopleasedtofindtheproperty,

thatwegraspedtheopportunity,’explainsRachel.‘Andwe

wereabletoplacethechildrenina localprimaryschool.’

In 2010 afterdaughterAmberwasborn,thecouple

setaboutlookingfora propertytobuy.‘Wesearchedfor

absolutelyages,butit seemedthattheCotswoldswasa very

popularchoice,andweweregazumpedtwice,’saysRachel.

Finally,theirpatiencewasrewardedwhena friendtold

themabouta propertythatwasabouttogoupforsale.Setin

themiddleofrollingcountryside,thehousestartedlifeasa

cowbarnandtractorshed,andhadbeendevelopedbythe

previousownersmorethan 20 yearsago.‘Whenit cameon

themarket,I thinktheconfigurationputpotentialbuyers

off,asit onlyhadonebedroomonthefirstfloorand

everythingelsewasonthegroundfloor,’recallsRachel.

‘Itwasdefinitelyinneedofsomecreativevisionbutthe

location,standingaloneontheedgeofthevillageand

surroundedbybeautifulcountryside,wasbreathtaking.’

RachelandAndrewpurchasedthepropertyin 2013 and

then spent a year trying to obtain planning permission before

25bhJune 2019| 123