INSPIRING
Swapping London for the Yorkshire Dales opened up an exciting new chapter for one family as they embraced rural life and the renovation of their listed property
SNUG
The previous owners built the useful foor-to-ceiling shelving. When Kate Andrews (pictured) and her family moved in they decided not to touch this room. ‘The peachy colour on the walls and built-in shelving feels so cosy, I’m not sure we’ll change much,’ she says. Pink velvet sofa, Sofa.com. Lampstand, vintage fair. Lampshade, John Lewis & Partners
After almost two decades of living and working in London, Kate Andrews and her husband Jake Willmore decided to relocate their young family to North Yorkshire for a more gentle pace of life, trading in their three-bedroom Victorian conversion flat in New Cross Gate for a seven-bedroom Grade II-listed Georgian house in need of a complete renovation.
‘We’d outgrown our home in south-east London,’ explains Kate, ‘and I was keen to move back to where I’d grown up to be closer to our family and old friends, and to give our sons the kind of upbringing Jake and I have such fond memories of, surrounded by nature and enjoying the simple pleasures. The good life!’
Although an escape to the country was the main priority, it was also important for the couple to stay connected to family and friends, so the house had to be big enough to comfortably accommodate lots of visitors. ‘Luckily we were house hunting before the pandemic, when property prices outside of cities went through the roof, so selling up in London and moving north gave us a good budget to work with,’ Kate remembers. They bought a sprawling property in a small village on the outskirts of Richmond, and had enough money left over for a good chunk of renovation work.
‘From the outset we’d been looking for a project we could make our own,’ explains Kate. ‘We have specific tastes and didn’t want to pay over the odds for a newly renovated property, with a modern kitchen and bathrooms that we’d immediately want to replace.’
Comprising a main dwelling and separate servants’ quarters, Cleasby House ticked that box. Although it had beautiful proportions and original features, everything needed updating. ‘The previous owners clearly had a flair for interior design,’ Kate says, ‘and there were some lovely elements I wanted to keep, such as silk wallpaper and matching curtains in some of the rooms, incredible floor-to-ceiling shelving in the snug and a pub in the basement!’
HOME PROFILE
Kate Andrews, creative manager for End Clothing, her husband Jake Willmore, brand director for Lavenham Jackets and George Cox Footwear, and their two sons, Rafferty and Ferdinand
A seven-bedroom, Grade II-listed
