Once the main rooms of the house were completed (you can see all of them here) we began work building our Orangery from scratch. We knew we wanted a light, bright room – and an orangery rather than a conservatory. The former has foundations and feels more like a sturdy room in the house, rather than an add-on.
We hunted around for someone who could realise our vision and found Vale, who have often built orangeries for historic National Trust properties – it was key that the room looked like it had always been there, rather than too modern. Vale has their own range of paint colours (so helpful) and we went with Catkin which is neutral without being cold. Amazingly, the arched windows were not only right for the era of the house but also matched what was already in the adjoining kitchen- I love it when things work out like that. We also kept the existing double doors.
The sisal is from Alternative Flooring and I layered it with this gorgeous pink and green scalloped rug from a collaboration by Salvesen Graham and Jennifer Manners. It’s one of my most favourite things, and so unusual. The welsh oak dresser I managed to find in Wales (via Love Antiques) and if you hunt around antiques dealers then you don’t have to end up spending a fortune. The small hooks under one of the dresser shelves are for mugs and jugs- I didn’t want shiny new hooks and had looked everywhere for the right ones. I couldn’t believe it when I found them in an Italian hardware store on a work trip to Florence. Why I was in a hardware shop in Italy in the first place is a bit of a mystery to me but I was thrilled to find the perfect hooks.
The crockery is a collection that has been built up over the years. Some pieces are from LA and others inherited from my Mum; the most recent addition is a group of vintage egg cups! The plants we have in the Orangery are traditional to this type of room. I was incredibly inspired by pictures of Cecil Beaton’s Orangery at The Reddish House (his former home) which was full of plants.
The oak refectory table was a Gumtree discovery and the Windsor Back chairs were also a real find on eBay as they can be very expensive. I find if you search for specifics like ‘welsh oak’ or ‘Windsor back’ then you’re much more likely to come across a hidden treasure, which can end up saving you quite a bit of money. Our sofa is from Loaf; I wanted a traditional sofa with a rolled arm and I love the blush pink colour that has a lot of texture to it. For the lighting we kept it simple as the room is so bright during the day, but I did include a lovely handmade pendant light by Alice Palmer as well as a blue ceramic lamp by India Jane with a shade by The Edition 94 and another lamp from eBay. The wicker coffee table and loveseat are both by Soho Home but you can find alternatives on Wayfair or Etsy.
The finished result is a cosy and colourful room with lots of texture. We had our Christmas tree in here this year which really gave the room a new lease of life! And there is our bright Orangery. Which room do you want to see next?
