For years it had been Michelle and Roy Foster's ambition to own a venerable old property that they could restore and make their own. But the perfect place had always eluded them. Then, after months of searching, they were introduced to a converted, mid-Victorian cottage in rural Warwickshire. Two spiky gable ends nudged the sky and the high-pitched roof was edged with frilly bargeboards. It looked like a Victorian illustrator's idea of a house in a fairy story and the Fosters were smitten.

The house was conveniently within reach of Stratford-upon-Avon, where, for seven years, Michelle and her business partner Liz Morris, have run their design shop Foster Morris Interiors.

“The Victorian cottage was perfect because we like higher ceilings, squarer rooms and larger windows than those offered by most old cottages,” says Michelle. “We could see the bones of this house were good and that it would give us scope to put our own stamp on it.” The bones may have been acceptable, but virtually everything else, from plumbing and wiring to floors and doors, were not. “If we had known the extent of the work needed, we wouldn't have moved in until it had been completed,” admits Michelle. “We placed most of our furniture in storage, put our soft furnishings in one room and camped in the house for several months.”

A kitchen extension was created to house a spacious breakfast room, with windows on three sides; plaster on all the walls and ceilings was renewed; floors were strengthened in order to support Michelle's antique baths and radiators; and the staircase wall was removed to reveal beautiful oak beams that now lead up to the bedrooms. “We decided that we'd do the building work once only – and do it right,” says Michelle.

Although Foster Morris offers styles that range from classic to contemporary, in her own home Michelle has opted for a sophisticated country style. “A country house like this needs a country interior,” she says. “My own preference at the moment veers towards a French look, which is soft and easy to live with. I love muted colours such as pale blue and grey, delicate pink and cream. I can then introduce colour through accessories and soft furnishings. But with one set of bedroom curtains I decided to make a big statement by using vintage fabric with a pattern of heavy, dark-red roses. It was beautiful but too bold so I ended up taking them out. I prefer faded beauty.”

The summer sitting room is a good example of this philosophy. No fewer than six different patterned fabrics mingle on the sofa and high-back chair alone. Sprigged floral cushions with bobble fringes rest against rose-patterned upholstery, while a graphic gingham covers the back of an upright chair. On the floor an Aubusson-style rug adds yet another pattern. The look works because the colours of the fabrics work beautifully together and both curtains and walls have been kept neutral.

Most of the pieces in the house were picked up by Michelle during early morning raids on antiques fairs and markets; but as French-style decorative pieces are so in vogue, and therefore increasingly hard to find, she has also built up a useful list of English dealers who all make regular forays to French brocantes.

In the end, though, it is Michelle's ability to combine a distinctive French flavour with her own elegant style that has imbued the cottage with magical new life.

WORDS PAT GARRATT
STYLING ANNA MALHOMME DE LA ROCHE
PHOTOGRAPHS POLLY WREFORD
SEPTEMBER 2004