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GLOBAL APPEAL


Travels abroad have widened Marie and Jonathan Coburns horizons when it comes to choosing their style of decor.
As well as being seasoned renovators. Marie and Jonathan Coburn love to travel and are often inspired by some of the wonderful places they have visited. The Coburns last home - a barn conversion in North Yorkshire - was dressed in a distinctly Asian fashion after the pair returned from a trip to I ndia. So it was no surprise to learn that more recent visits to New York had left their mark on the couples imagination.
We stayed in a hotel where the decor was based on white, leather and texture.
says Marie. It made us feel very upbeat and I knew I wanted to introduce some of those positive elements into our home next time wc moved. So when the pair bought another agricultural conversion just a few miles away from their old home, they kept their experiences of the Big Apple very much in mind and designed its interior with the light, spaceand sense of easy living they had enjoyed back in the States.
HEART OF THE HOME The barn in question was the last in a series of larm buildings that had been converted by a local developer. The Coburns bought the property as a shell, so were able to redesign its layout and choose their own fittings. It was the r.ext best thing to a self - build. Marie enthuses. In due course, the couple rejigged the ground floor to suit their lifestyle, shifting around the partition walls so the kitchen became the heart of the house. Overseeing the scheduled six - month project, Marie was on hand daily to monitor its progress. It enabled me to make important decisions on site, she says. I learnt to be quite firm about what I wanted, including incorporating a sink in the island facing outwards so that the scheme was more sociable." Maries old kitchen had been quite dark and traditional, so alight, refreshing feel was a top priority. The only hitch came when the sink was fitted into the silcstonc worksurfacc. which cracked and had to be replaced. Luckily, that was the only disaster we faced. says Marie.

GLOBAL APPEAL


To prevent the kitchen from appearing too bland, she chose two styles of units and hung pendant lights over the island to draw the eye away from the high, beamed ceiling.
I took my time and spent hours searching for deals on the internet. says Marie. I read lots of magazines for inspiration and cut out photographs of designs I liked. Marie also took samples of the cabinetry to the local tile shop to help her choose the right floor finish.
It was a big area to cover and I didntwant to make a mistake." she explains.
COUNTRY CASUAL When it came to decorating the rest of the house. Marie painted every room except the master suite in the same subtle shade from Farrow & Ball. You can spend hours agonising over a particular colour but 1 think its the overall effect that counts. she says. Marie didnt want to spend a lot of money on new furnirure so she reused what she had. re - coveringchairs and sofas where necessary and adding accessories to create a luxe finish.
I dont buy lots of designer pieces, instead the high street and websites are my hunting ground. says Marie.I keep moving things around until Im satisfied. Its all about symmetry and balance. she adds. I f you get that right, everything else falls into place.
Maries aim was to achieve a city - inspired look without blowing the budget and the result has exceeded her expectations. Weve created the cosmopolitan feel we craved. she says. A traditional English barn with a bit of New Yotk thrown into the mix.
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