2019-08-01_25_Beautiful_Homes

livingroom

Furnitureinboldblock

shapeslendsa modern

looktothespace.

JulianChichesterGarcon

coffeetable,£2,049;sofa

indeLeCuonaEskimoSeal

velvet,£173m;bespokeBazaar

rug;Villaverdechandelier,

£5,500, all Bear René

a

lexandChrisKinderweresurprisedtofallinlove
withthisgrandcountryhouseassoonastheysawit,
astheyhadn’tbeenlookingfora ruralhome.‘We
werelivingina victorianhomeinlondonandall
i wantedwasmorespaceandgreenery,’saysalex.‘aparkor
gardensquarewaswhatwehadinmind,butofcoursewefound
wewouldgetmoreforourmoneyif wemovedoutofthecapital.’
thecouplefocusedonberkshire,foreaseofcommuting
intolondon.‘Wedidn’thavea particularstyleorperiodof
architectureinmind,’saysalex.‘Weinitiallylookedatcottages,
butbecauseChrisandi arebothquitetall,wequicklyrealised
thattheirlowbeamsdidn’tsuitourheight!Whenwewalkedin
hereandsawthehighceilingsandspaciousrooms,it feltright.’
althoughthehousehadbeenwelllookedafter,partsofit
were quite tired and not suited to 21st-century family life so

assoonastheyhadthekeystheKindersbeganworkonit,

movinginsixmonthslaterwiththeirthreedaughters,maddie,

13,Claudia,12,andthea,eight.theeightiesconservatory

wasknockeddownandreplacedwitha single-storeykitchen

extensionthatwasmoreinkeepingwiththeproperty’s

architecture.‘thehouseis gradeii-listed,’saysalex.‘oddly,

theplannersseemedmoreamenabletousputtingupa

contemporaryglassbox– i thinkbecauseyouwouldsee

theoriginalarchitecturethroughit – butwedidn’twant

anythingtoomodern.i wanteda kitchenthatwasmoreakin

toa traditionalorangery.ittooka littlelongerthan usual to

obtainpermission,butwegotthereintheend.’

therestofthehousewasmadeupofseveralsmallrooms.

downstairs,someinternalwallswereremovedtocreatea large

family room and, upstairs, some small bedrooms were turned

FAVOU R I T E RO OM ‘Thelivingroomismycherishedescapearea.WehavenoTVin

there so the children tend to avoid it - which leaves a lovely, calm space for us to read in’

98 | 25bhAuGuSt 2019