For Clare Teed and her family, Christmas Day in their Cornish holiday home in Crantock is a traditional affair, following a much-loved routine.
‘We open stockings – not too early – then have some ham for breakfast, followed by either church or a walk,’ explains Clare. ‘We have nibbles to keep everyone going, and lunch is timed to finish as the Queen comes on TV. Then we open presents, watch a film or play a game together, and round it all off with a cold supper. We love it. The fires make it all so cosy, and the house accommodates lots of family without feeling like we are on top of each other.’
It’s a far cry from their first Christmas in the house, when they camped out in draughty rooms and cooked lunch on an ancient Aga that kept going out. It was 2007, and Clare and her husband David had just bought the grade II-listed former farmhouse. They had outgrown a holiday cottage nearby and were planning an extension when this place, on the north Cornwall coast, came up for sale.
‘I come from a Cornish family and was brought up on the south coast of the county, and David’s parents have retired to the village, so the area was an obvious choice for us,’ explains Clare, a yoga instructor and interior designer. ‘We didn’t even look at any other properties. We loved the house and its layout, the generous size of the rooms and the fact that it’s in the heart of the village yet feels really secluded. We snapped it up.’
Having been used as a holiday let for years, the property featured numerous swirly carpets, a peach bathroom and immersion heaters in odd places. It required renovating and updating, which included replacing all the plastic-framed windows with wooden sashes, rewiring, installing central heating, repairing the rotten staircase, and repointing the damp front wall using historically correct lime.
‘Because it’s a holiday home I had absolutely free rein with decorating it,’ says Clare. ‘We sold most of the furniture from the other house, which meant there was no baggage and I was able to give it a very cohesive look.’
With a backdrop of plain, pale colours, Clare has combined antique and modern pieces, all of them quite minimal in form and many of them elegantly functional. ‘I really didn’t want to be precious,’ says Clare. ‘If you keep colours simple you can bring beautiful textures in, and it means that mixing old and new can really work. I didn’t have an endless budget – it was a lot of house to do in one go – so I spent the money on basics like the electrics and the heating, and haunted the antiques markets, especially Kempton and Ardingly, for furniture. I always enjoy creating unique interiors, and using antique and vintage furnishings that aren’t readily available on the high street makes this so much easier. It’s very often cheaper, too. Rather than choosing a particular period, I have always been drawn to more rustic and utilitarian pieces. I love the idea that things have been used before, and I prefer the eclectic look to everything matching.’
Clare added other finds from salvage yards and sales, as well as ex-display pieces and old French linens, washed and tumble-dried ‘so they’re nice and floppy, and won’t shrink when I wash them again’. These she had made into slipcovers, curtains and cushion covers. There are touches of colour around, but on the whole the effect is one of pared-down simplicity and understated comfort. ‘I like white and the fact that different tones of white looks so interesting together. My father was a cabinetmaker, so I’ve always loved wood – the mix of calm and pale pieces with wooden floors is so appealing.’
At Christmas, Clare puts together a careful choice of decorations that she has collected over the years, with the occasional twinkle of fairy lights and some sculptural flower arrangements. The theme is simple and natural, with lots of greenery from the garden, willow and moss, supplemented by candles in all shapes and sizes that provide a gentle glow in almost every room.
‘The front door wreath is always home-made, and every year I try and get a couple of fab vintagey things from a shop called Attic in Hampton Hill in Middlesex,’ Clare adds.
This down-to-earth attitude is evident throughout the house, where the thoughtful renovation has resulted in a calm and welcoming, functional and beautiful home. Whether it’s a quick work visit, a long summer holiday or a family Christmas, the house has been designed so that Clare and David can simply turn up and, with no further ado, just relax.
‘I wanted somewhere that could cope with lots of guests, with sand from the beach, with wet, wintry days as well as sunny summer days,’ says Clare. ‘A holiday home has to be a place to refresh and recharge all year round. At this time of year we can go for long walks in the fresh air and then come back to warm rooms and sofas we can flop out on. Being here makes Christmas really special. It’s a wonderful place and we love it.’
For details of Clare’s interior design business, please contact her via email on clare@clareteed.com
