The brief behind Clovelly House was to create ‘an unconventional, yet soothing dream home’.
After initially planning to rebuild their home, the owners realised the scale of the construction would leave them with little money to invest in their interiors, and instead decided to engage Folk Studio for an internal overhaul.
‘At the beginning of the project, our clients had just fallen pregnant,’ Folk Studio director Mariah Burton says. ‘By the time we had finished, their beautiful boy was nine months old, so we designed the home with a growing family in mind.’
This meant instilling a sense of flexibility in every room to ensure the house felt like somewhere fun they could entertain friends and family while accommodating everyday life with a new baby.
Working closely with the couple in such a milestone phase, Mariah’s goal was to create spaces that accurately reflected the owner’s personality — and their journey together.
‘I wanted each space in the home to feel custom to their lifestyle. So asking how they live and what they like to do, how they host and even what type of wine they enjoy was all part of designing little zones in the home,’ she adds, pointing out the bar area and a custom vertical wine rack that’s quickly becoming one of Folk Studio’s signature features.
The palette for Clovelly House began with the large mustard sofa that sits proudly in the middle of the living room. From here, they drew inspiration from the house’s seaside location for the blonde timbers and tonal hues, but bought in pops of pastel pink and blue for a fresh take on the coastal aesthetic.
Luxurious touches of Viola marble feature in the blush-pink kitchen and the bespoke wavy detailing above the fireplace, as each of the bathrooms also reveals subtle curves in the brass handles. And a large contemporary artwork hung by Dan Rushford is hung above the dining table, cementing the home’s cool factor.
‘I wanted to push the boundaries in terms of the colour synergies,’ Mariah says.
On one hand, the finished home feels warm and familiar, with the same light energy you’d expect from a beachside house. But up close, there’s plenty of small details that make it just as unique.
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