The Davis family were living in a converted barn in East Sussex when they began to consider how they could make their lifestyle more sustainable. ‘It was a wonderful home for young kids, with a huge open-plan space for them to run wild in,’ says Zoe, who runs a textile business, Zobo Designs. ‘But we were keen for a project.’
The first property that Zoe and her husband, James, looked at was a Grade II-listed, six-bedroom farmhouse with outbuildings a few miles away, near Ticehurst. The couple viewed a fair few other houses, but ended up coming back to the farmhouse. ‘It was more work than we had considered, but it just felt right,’ says Zoe. In July 2015, the property was theirs, and they moved in with children Oli, now 15, Freya, 13, and Sam, 10.
It needed a thorough renovation and redecorating throughout. ‘The house has low ceilings and small windows, which is lovely when it’s cold and dark outside, but in the summer can sometimes feel oppressive,’ says Zoe. In an attempt to optimise the light, Zoe started by painting most of the downstairs walls white, but was uninspired by the end result. ‘It made it feel gloomy, and we realised that painting it darker created a much warmer, more inviting feel. The brighter colours worked better against the exposed brickwork and beams,’ she says.
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In the kitchen, Zoe kept the existing units and tiles, but painted them in vibrant blue and pink. A large table, surrounded by colourful chairs, sits at one end of the space. ‘My father-in-law was a builder and, when he retired, we inherited a number of workbenches – so we turned one into our kitchen table,’ says Zoe. ‘Obviously, it’s been scrubbed a fair few times since then, but he’s still a little nervous eating off it!’
Zoe has included plenty of vintage finds and is guided by putting together things that she loves, rather than overthinking whether or not they tie in with the rest of a room scheme. ‘I love visiting auction houses and we have collected much of our furniture from them over the years, including the butcher’s block, benches, chairs, stools and old lamps that we’ve had rewired. I get very excited about a bargain, and love restoring and reupholstering projects,’ Zoe says.
Back in 2003, the couple’s jobs took them to China for four years, and they lived in Shanghai –
a place that provided a great deal of inspiration. There they sourced a handmade teak bed, as well as the antique Tibetan chest used as a side table in the sitting room. ‘It was one of the first pieces of furniture James and I bought together. It is unusual to find one that size, and it’s become such a useful storage space,’ Zoe says.
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The property entails a lot of work, but luckily the Davises admit they aren’t very good at doing nothing. ‘It is definitely a lifestyle choice as there is always work to be done – in the veg garden, with the animals, fixing and maintaining the buildings and the land; the list goes on,’ says Zoe. The animals Zoe is referring to – in addition to two labradors and three cats – are two pigs, two alpacas, chickens, runner ducks and guinea fowl.
It has been a huge learning curve and they have had their fair share of mishaps. ‘There have been pigs on the road, escaped alpacas and, one time, 50 sheep decided to herd themselves into the cottage garden,’ says Zoe. It’s clear, however, that the family relish their new lifestyle. ‘I will never underestimate how lucky we are,’ she says. ‘When I breathe in country air I can physically feel the stress leaving my body. I love the open space, the greenery, and being surrounded by the animals.’
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