MERRY & BRIGHT

Mary Corbett and her husband Alastair transformed a brickmaker’s cottage into a much-loved and vibrant family home that’s double the size it used to be

- MAGGIE COLVIN

KITCHEN-DINER

Sunlight filters through the conservatory windows into this newly-built kitchen.

Units in Parma Gray estate eggshell, £64 for 2.5ltr, Farrow & Ball. Acrylic jug, £25, Club Matters

DINING ROOM

The 18th-century style mural gives this space a distinct character.

Hand-painted mural by Kim Sisson. Camargue dining chairs, £195 each, Oka; in Louis Blue chalk paint, £21.95 for 1ltr, Annie Sloan. True Grace dinner candles, £3 each, Heal’s

HOME TRUTHS

THE PROPERTY

Victorian cottage extended and partially rebuilt in 2001

LOCATION

Hampshire

ROOMS

Sitting room, dining room, kitchen-diner, six bedrooms (two en suite), bathroom

MOVED IN

2001

PREVIOUS PROPERTY

‘We lived in a cottage on the family farm,’ says Mary.

HALLWAY

A striking sweeping staircase and expansive hall contribute to the house’s elegant first impression.

Regency Hall lantern in bronze, £2,361, Vaughan. Baubles, from a selection, India Jane

FESTIVE TIP

‘Never be frightened to add bright neon decorations to your Christmas tree. I mix Day-Glo orange, shocking pink and canary yellow – it lifts the spirits’

MASTER BEDROOM