There's more than a touch of serendipity in Sarah Jempson's life. Take, for instance, the early Victorian round rosewood table in her sitting room. 'My first husband bought this for £6 at a London auction almost 60 years ago, but swapped it with my brother for an air rifle,' she recalls cheerfully. "The table then set off all over the world with him and his wife before it finally ended up in their new house nearby, where they simply didn't have room for it... So, it has finally come back home to me, just as it was meant to.
A similar brush with fate can be applied to the mellow 18th-century Sussex farmhouse that she and husband Jonathan now call home. We were already familiar with this house because, many years ago, it belonged to people we knew,' she says. 'Our children would come here to play with theirs. We always thought it was so pretty, but never imagined that one day we would actually live here. Sarah and Jonathan had lived in their previous house for 46 years and had adored it, but it had become too big for the two of them. 'It felt very much that the time had come to make a change,' says Sarah.
Their much-loved old home sold in just three days and, by August 2021, the farmhouse had become theirs. There was a lot to get on with. Sadly, no original characteristics remain inside the property. 'It's such a shame, but any internal features that may once have been here are long gone, Sarah says. This meant we had to consider ways to inject some character, as well as make some of the recent additions more sympathetic.
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Denne historien er fra July 2023-utgaven av Homes & Antiques.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Collecting Dioramas MINIATURE WORLDS
From elaborate taxidermy museum displays to humble folk art creations, a diorama can transport us to another time and place
Pride of place LEEDS CREAMWARE
In its heyday the pre-eminent rival to Wedgwood's Queens ware, Leeds creamware is still much revered by collectors for its understated elegance
Bohemian Rhapsody
An exuberant approach to decor, with rooms enveloped in colour and pattern, has brought this historic home merrily into the 21st century...
THE ANTIQUES THAT SHAPED ME Rory Hutton
The accessories designer on his love of silver spoons and Sévres porcelain
European HERITAGE B&Bs
Is there anything more inspiring than staying somewhere that's both beautifully stylish and imbued with history? Rhiannon Batten explores five gems across Europe, from Sweden to Spain...
STAR SALES
A Hitchens painting, a museum-quality teapot and a Parisian chocolate box are all top of the lots
Textile designs by artists
Influential 20th-century fine artists and sculptors, from Picasso to Barbara Hepworth, gained additional status as textile designers until decline set in during the 1970s
Period DRAMA
A painstaking renovation has brought this 1725 former Huguenot silk weaver's house in London's Spitalfields back to life
An artist's RESIDENCE
Rustic details and a restrained palette lend a sense of simplicity to this lovingly restored Friesian bakery
Carefully Curated LIVING
This lovingly restored Gustavian manor has become both home and showroom for its owners, Maria & Jan Åke, who deal in European antiques