where she found the wood for the corner bath soap holder. “I thought it looked like something interior designer Athena Calderone would have in her home – my version is a bit less expensive!” Debbie’s fondness for wallpaper isn’t restricted to the walls either. In the attic twin bedroom, she used B&Q Fresco paper on the walls and oor. ts inepensie and once arnished oer, practical too.


“The attic level was quite a bizarre space,” she continues. “The previous owners had removed several walls and put in a bar and as a result, it didn’t really feel like a farm cottage up there.” Debbie and Dave took away the bar making it into a bedroom once more and reinstated the original walls. This allowed them to create a suite with two bedrooms and a Jack and Jill bathroom for the couple’s four grandchildren and their parents when they come to stay. Today, the interior is nearly to Debbie’s liking although she’s constantly tweaking and moving things around. However now, she has other challenges to occupy her time. “Three years in and the gardens are our next


project,” says Debbie. However, Debbie’s plans are more ambitious than introducing a few planters and a bit of landscaping. As a fan of Jack Wallington, garden designer, and author of The Times Garden Book of the Year 2022, A Greener Life. Debbie decided to approach Jack to help her. “I wanted to build a habitat, not simply a garden, so I contacted Jack and asked if he would be interested in doing a project with us and he said he’d love to.” The proect should take fie years and Debbie has to instigate it. “I’m a complete novice but


jul/aug 2023


Jack will do a site visit once a year to make sure I’m on the right track. I’m really excited about it as his ideas are amazing.” As part of the redevelopment of the land, the couple also have ambitious plans for the outbuildings. Work will soon commence on the barn closest to the house to turn it into a commercial building for their consultancy business. The second, larger barn will be demolished and within its footprint two one-bed, holiday cottages will be erected. “We’re also going through the process of putting in a borehole beside the cottages and then we’ll have our own water supply which will be very pure. She adds: “This is such an incredible place, I would like other people to experience it. We would like to be able to bring our clients here and eventually invite guests to come and stay so they are able to take a bit of Easter Shian home with them.” Such is Debbie’s passion for Easter Shian that she has started her own ezine about the goings on at the farm. “It’s a wonderful way of documenting what we do with the house and if anyone can pick up some ideas, they can have them for free. Is it a history of the house? I don’t know!” Also on the cards is an Easter Shian candle range, and Debbie is in discussions about developing an Easter Shian gin as well as a special tartan.


“I’m not a naturally patient person, but Easter Shian has taught me patience. It’ll probably take us a lifetime to do everything we want to and to restore all the character; it’s an ongoing process but an enjoyable one.” You can keep up to date with the goings on at Easter Shian at www.eastershian.com 


www.sbhonline.co.uk 45


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