Project Name: Wickham House

Location: Hampshire

Date Completed : January 2018

Interior Designer: Halo Design Interiors Ltd

The brief was to renovate the existing historic country house, to create a comfortable and welcoming environment for the client and his extended family to live in. They wanted all areas of the house to be family friendly and usable, whilst keeping the sense of grandeur and depth of history which the house has been witness to through previous centuries.  Their brief was to create a country house worthy of it’s setting, whilst at the same time ensuring that it provided a space to accommodate modern life.

One key requirement was the creation of a large family kitchen/living space which the house lacked at that time. The multiple aspects of the ground floor in particular allowed to create seating areas for use at different times of the day/year, with the deep red hallway setting the tone for the rest of the house, with it’s mix of classical pieces and modern art.   With 11 bedroom suites, the first floor was designated as use for close family, with the top floor, which previously would have been for live-in staff, being designated for guests.  Each bedroom suite was given it’s own personality in terms of the interiors.

The interiors are a blend of antique pieces owned and treasured by the clients, and modern and vintage quirky pieces which help to lighten the mood.  There is a sense of eclecticism sitting alongside timeless design which will ensure that this phase of the house’s history has it’s own distinct personality and stakes it’s claim to be remembered in future years.

The renovation of this historic house has preserved a piece of history for centuries to come, as the existing framework of the house was lovingly cleaned, refurbished and given new life.

Space planning skills were particularly called upon in this project, in particular in relation to furniture layouts in large rooms to reflect modern day living.  For example, what was previously a large ballroom was re-purposed as an evening lounge, and the challenge lay in ensuring that the overly large space was reconfigured to provide a cosy, but elegant evening space, for entertaining as well as family nights.

Existing cornices were repaired and reinstated by specialists, where they had been damaged through the years, and existing panelling and stone floors were cleaned, repaired and preserved for another century.