“It was a wonderful way to live,” explains Bill, “so when we decided to come back to live in England, we were looking to find somewhere that offered that stunning combination of huge skies, big landscapes and ancient old countryside on to which we could put a Scandinavian home.” Moons Green on the Isle of Oxney, part of the Romney Marsh, proved to be the ideal spot!
Originally a seven acre field with a simple cattle shed, they purchased the plot with planning permission to build a house. Although they had no experience of building (by trade Bill is a publisher and photographer) they bought a flat-pack house in Sweden – from a company called Hedlunds – with the intention of erecting their own home in Kent. “The agreement with the Swedish company involved them bringing over the frame and erecting the shell, everything else – building the inside rooms, installing the services, fitting out etc –was down to us,” explains Bill. “We appointed a builder in the UK to do all those jobs and it would have all been very straightforward if said builder had turned up. He didn’t and so, with the help of a carpenter, we took over the frame and got stuck in. It took a year, but in 2002 the job was completed and we moved into a finished six-bedroom, three-bathroom home”.
Coming in through the front door the Swedish influence is immediately apparent. From the lobby, through the dining room and on into the sitting room, the walls in this more formal part of the house are all painted in Dulux Gustavian Grey, perfectly complementing the ice grey laminate wood floor and ceilings lined in lime-washed tongue and grooved pine boards. The floor and ceiling boards were all imported from Sweden and Bill was surprised that similar materials in these subtle, washed-out tones weren’t readily available in the UK. He even went as far as trying to encourage wholesalers to stock them but amazingly there was little interest. The overall effect is immediate – tasteful, calming and very Scandinavian.
In the dining area, a large metal-work candelabrum – amazingly from IKEA – dominates the space and a wall-mounted mirror has been cleverly positioned to reflect the light from the twinkling flames back into the room. Most of the furniture in this part of the house is old pine, whose honey tones perfectly offset the grey and a French mule chest is used to display a wonderful collection of ancient, modern, treasured and whimsical artefacts including an old clog found in the chimney of their original Tudor home in Cranbrook. Robert Tollast pastels of their sons are hung on the walls.
This dining room leads into the sitting room filled with large comfy sofas covered in blue and white ticking. Translucent white linen drapes add to the ethereal look and provide the perfect backdrop for treasured works of art including two oils of William Avery and his wife – Ingrid’s great-great English grandparents.
The other end of the house has a more relaxed feel and is evidently where the parties happen! The whole downstairs part of this wing has huge plate-glass windows that open out onto a south-facing deck with far-reaching views across the Romney marshes. A huge lake that wraps around the house completes what is a picture-postcard wintry landscape. A table long enough to comfortably seat fourteen was commissioned from a joiner at The Old Forge in Appledore and this dominates the dining area. Rustic French pine furniture, some impressive paintings and a few quirky collectables – such as a tin man advertising a downtown shoe shop somewhere in the American Midwest – complete the look.
The other end of the room opens out to a relaxed snug dominated by huge velvet sofas and heated by a very impressive “contraption”! Further investigation revealed it to be a “Kakelugn” – a wood-burning stove, common in Eastern and Northern Europe but almost unheard of over here. Looking like a huge white cylinder covered in thick ceramic tiles, the bottom of the chimney houses a wood-burning stove, while above, the hot air is funnelled around and around to create a massive radiator. Apparently, once lit, it kicks out 14kw of heat, so no chance of being cold and Bill can’t understand why more people don’t have one.
He’s evidently quite keen on his pyrotechnics, as outside on the decking sits a huge pink igloo – a recently completed bread oven. A labour of love, the oven took five months to build using firebricks brought down specially from Lancashire and a £20 terracotta chimney, courtesy of e-bay. Perfect for summer evenings!
The upstairs landing has been cleverly used as a gallery to house one of the boys’ drum kits. With amazing panoramic views framed by airforce blue linen curtains, it would certainly be an inspirational place to let rip.
Bedrooms and bathrooms lead off this upper-floor gallery and here again a Scandinavian feel pervades. The master bedroom is panelled throughout with washed tongue and groove pine and a plain wood floor. Kept simple and with clean lines, navy bedlinen and white pillows look perfect. This is in contrast to a child’s bedroom further along the landing where pinks and turquoise have been cleverly used to create a really light and pretty room.
But as well as being a light and spacious family home, Moons Green is also a hive of industry thanks to Bill bringing together an unlikely trio to share his passion for the good life and great food. Philip Ashton Cobb, Bill’s next door neighbour, has been tending stock and running an organic market garden for many years – there’s always a long queue at his Rye Farmers Market stall. Another friend, John Doig a kiwi food writer, is a passionate devotee of all things related to cured pork and spends hours curing bacon, preparing air-dried hams and making chorizo.
Recognising a rare combination of talent and shared interest, Bill has used the farm at Moons Green to bring these friends together to run a hugely popular seasonal programme of pig, poultry and small-holding courses. “More and more people are seeking the good life but don’t know where to begin. They’re able to come down here and spend a day with Philip and our rare breed pigs and poultry to learn the basics of smallholding. There are different courses to suit all requirements and one of the main attractions is being able to sit around the table at the end of the day, overlooking the lake with a good glass of wine, a hunk of freshly baked bread and a plate of exceptionally good home-cured saucisson. What more could you want!”
