Profile
THE OWNERS Franco Bergamaschi and his
wife Daniela founder-owners of the Italian organic
skincare company LâErbolario (erbolario.co.uk). The
house is used at weekends by the family âthey have
two children Luigi (30) and Giulia (27).THE PROPERTY Nineteenth-century
farmhouse within a designated area of natural
beauty just outside Milan. On the ground oor
a spacious hall leads into a living room dining
room kitchen and pantry and there is also a small
bathroom. Upstairs there are ve bedroom suites
which each comprise a bedroom bathroom and
dressing room.ABOVE The sitting room is
lit by vintage wall lanterns
that Franco and Daniela
bought from Raw. The metal
letters above the original
stone replace are vintage
shop signage. The elegant
sofa and the buttoned
pouf are both French and
have been upholstered in
a heavy natural canvas.
The découpage plates are
by John Derian. The walls
and ceilings are all painted
the same chalky white to
maximise the lightBut far from being a problem Cascina
La Follaâs ruinous state and complicated
circumstances only added to its charm
for Franco and Daniela. The couple own
a successful organic beauty business
LâErbolario (equivalent to Nealâs Yard
Remedies in the UK) which has a strong
ecological ethos and both Franco and Daniela
are passionate about environmental issues and
organic farming. They saw restoring Cascina
La Folla as an opportunity to safeguard part
of the architectural heritage of the region.
âWe wanted to be as faithful as possible
to the overall features of the house and more
broadly to the spirit of the rural buildings
H&A SUMMER 2017 71H&A LIFESTYLE: Homes