When Phil Russell’s job brought him back to London after 18 years of living and working in Tokyo and Hong Kong, he had only a short time to find his family a new home in England. But the house that he selected did not quite meet with his wife Gaynor’s approval, and so at a distance of nearly 6,000 miles, she set about finding a more suitable one. It had to be located within an hour and a quarter of the City for Phil, and close enough to Ardingly College for the children to get to school.

TEST The drawing room. The huge inglenook fireplace, with its herringbone-patterned brick chimney-breast, has a grand, iron fireback with an important-looking crest. The simplicity of the decorative scheme provides a serene backdrop to the furniture that the couple have collected on their travels

The drawing room. The huge inglenook fireplace, with its herringbone-patterned brick chimney-breast, has a grand, iron fireback with an important-looking crest. The simplicity of the decorative scheme provides a serene backdrop to the furniture that the couple have collected on their travels

TEST

TEST In the dining room Gaynor added window seats and black tasselled blinds. Instead of a traditional, long dining table that would have looked formal and rather cold with so much space either side of it, she chose a square one, that was so vast, it had to be built inside the house!

In the dining room Gaynor added window seats and black tasselled blinds. Instead of a traditional, long dining table that would have looked formal and rather cold with so much space either side of it, she chose a square one, that was so vast, it had to be built inside the house!

TEST The view into the kitchen from the dining room. A simple wrought-iron candelabrum hangs above the table

The view into the kitchen from the dining room. A simple wrought-iron candelabrum hangs above the table

TEST Gaynor knocked the kitchen and dining room together to create one enormous space

Gaynor knocked the kitchen and dining room together to create one enormous space

TEST

TEST One end of the library. A pair of sofas, upholstered in Zoffany pink velvet, nestle around the generously proportioned fireplace stacked with logs. “We usually take these sofas out to the summerhouse in the warmer months,” says Gaynor

One end of the library. A pair of sofas, upholstered in Zoffany pink velvet, nestle around the generously proportioned fireplace stacked with logs. “We usually take these sofas out to the summerhouse in the warmer months,” says Gaynor

TEST A cosy seating area, just to the side of the kitchen, is home to some of the children’s artwork

A cosy seating area, just to the side of the kitchen, is home to some of the children’s artwork

TEST Interestingly, when the Arts & Crafts movement was at its peak, it also coincided with a great European interest in Oriental art and a kind of fever for collecting Chinese and Japanese furniture and artefacts. So it’s amusing to think then that many of Gaynor and Phil’s interiors would not seem out of place in a 1910 edition of Country Life!

Interestingly, when the Arts & Crafts movement was at its peak, it also coincided with a great European interest in Oriental art and a kind of fever for collecting Chinese and Japanese furniture and artefacts. So it’s amusing to think then that many of Gaynor and Phil’s interiors would not seem out of place in a 1910 edition of Country Life!

TEST

TEST Upstairs, the main bedroom is painted a pale green from Kelly Hoppen Paints and the bay window has had window seats added, this time with lilac suede cushions

Upstairs, the main bedroom is painted a pale green from Kelly Hoppen Paints and the bay window has had window seats added, this time with lilac suede cushions

TEST

TEST A guest room has been given the same chalky white walls as elsewhere but there is a chocolate brown and white striped blind, echoing the dark wall timbers, while the white bedlinen is dressed with pink embroidered cushions and a Japanese lantern made of textured pink paper hangs above

A guest room has been given the same chalky white walls as elsewhere but there is a chocolate brown and white striped blind, echoing the dark wall timbers, while the white bedlinen is dressed with pink embroidered cushions and a Japanese lantern made of textured pink paper hangs above

TEST “All my children had been born in the East, and of course we had collected lots of Oriental pictures and furniture over the years. We had a lovely house in Tokyo and I was used to the bustle and anonymity of a big city, so although it was breathtakingly beautiful here, to be in the middle of the English countryside did feel quite strange,” says Gaynor

“All my children had been born in the East, and of course we had collected lots of Oriental pictures and furniture over the years. We had a lovely house in Tokyo and I was used to the bustle and anonymity of a big city, so although it was breathtakingly beautiful here, to be in the middle of the English countryside did feel quite strange,” says Gaynor

TEST The main family bathroom is a peaceful retreat of generous proportions

The main family bathroom is a peaceful retreat of generous proportions

TEST

TEST

  • words:
  • pictures: David Merewether
  • styling: Lucy Fleming

Building Connections

After nearly a decade of planning, Dominic and Eve were finally given permission to convert a pair of derelict barns, linking them together to create one very beautiful dwelling Words: Jo Arnell Photographs: David Merewether The story arc of an...

Change it up

Neil and Sharon Maidment’s reconfigured family home is the result of a very successful partnership with OPEN architecture, who opened their eyes to a new layout they never imagined was possible Words: Fiona Patrick Photographs: David Merewether The green modular...

Cut to Fit

Deborah Harrison downsized to a three bedroom house, which she renovated and reconfigured, reinstating the original Victorian features and editing family heirlooms to suit her new home and lifestyle “As William Morris says, ‘Everything has to be beautiful or useful,’”...