2019-06-01 25 Beautiful Homes

25bh |

for stockistsgo to where to buy

french ranch house

GUESTBEDROOM

Davidwantedtocreatea cool

andairyspareroomtohelp

visitingfriendsandfamily

enjoya calmnight’ssleep.

hedblomstercushions,£15

each,Ikea.Feria 1987 poster,

€8;Feria 1984 poster,€8,both

NÎmes tourisme shop

T

heProvençalcountryside,withitsolivegroves,pine

forestsandrockyoutcrops,wassostunningthatas

DavidandAnnPricedrovedownthedirttrack

towardsa convertedgoatshed,theybothsaid,

‘We’llbuyit – it doesn’tmatterwhatit’slike,we’llfixit.’The

propertyturnedouttoofferfarmoreopportunitiesthanthey

couldeverhaveimagined.‘Thepreviousownerhadconverted

it intheearlySeventies,’saysDavid,anarchitectandinterior

designer.It wasa long,U-shaped,ranch-styleconstruction,

witha courtyardinthemiddle,flankedbystablesandother

accommodation(includingagited ’ étapeforguestsarrivingon

horseback).Alltheopeningsfacedinwards,ignoringtheviews.

‘Weknewimmediatelythatwehadtoopenit uptothe

surroundinglandscape,’saysDavid.‘Therearefamiliesof

wildboar,foxes,eagle-owlsandkestrelstospot.Thebigthing

foruswastoletinasmuchlightaspossibleandbeintouch

withnature.’But,asthepropertyis intheAlpillesNational

Park,theexistingfootprinthadtoberetained.Theresultis

what David calls ‘an elegant compromise’. ‘We had to think

longandhardabouttheeventuallayoutbecausethehouse

is 100 metreslongandtheroofwasverylow,’hesays.

Thecouplehavedevelopedthepropertyinphasesover

theyears,asandwhentheycouldaffordto.‘Webuiltthepool

first,tiledingreenmosaicwitha Périgordstonesurround,to

keepournow-grown-updaughtershappy,’saysDavid.The

longrestorationprocessthenbegan– theoldgited ’ étapewas

turnedintoa multiroomofficeandthemainlivingspaces

wereputinthewestwingtocapitaliseontheamazingviews.

Daviddecoratedthehouseina mixofmid-centuryand

modernstyles,withsimplewhitewalls,beamsandstonefloor,

whichis typicalofthearea.Colourandfinishingtouches

comeviaart,tilesandceramics,plusa fewpiecesfromlocal

brocantes.‘Wegoforthingsthatresonateanddisplaythem

simply,sotheobjectsspeakforthemselves,’saysDavid.The

resultis a stylishhousethatis alsoa much-lovedhome.‘We

adoreit andthelandscapeit liesin,althoughwe’dprobably

builddifferentlyif startingfromscratch,’saysDavid.

‘And that just might be the next challenge.’

decorating tip‘Makesurethereis somecontrastinyourhome,whether

through colour or tone – something to bring out the best of the other elements’

94 | 25bhjuNe 2019