{"id":2502,"date":"2024-04-05T15:31:37","date_gmt":"2024-04-05T07:31:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/homeofmaterials.com\/2024\/04\/05\/second-act-a-london-design-couples-townhouse-in-a-small-french-market-town\/"},"modified":"2024-04-05T15:31:37","modified_gmt":"2024-04-05T07:31:37","slug":"second-act-a-london-design-couples-townhouse-in-a-small-french-market-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/homeofmaterials.com\/it\/second-act-a-london-design-couples-townhouse-in-a-small-french-market-town\/","title":{"rendered":"Secondo atto: La casa a schiera di una coppia di designer londinesi in una piccola citt\u00e0 di mercato francese"},"content":{"rendered":"

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London-based designers Lone and Chris McCourt, had long fallen in love with the the small town of Uz\u00e8s, France, and in fact had bought a summer house on the outskirts. When a medieval building (built in 1200!) right in the heart of the village came on the market, they realized that while they enjoyed rural life, town life might just have more to offer.<\/p>\n

So the couple traded their country retreat for a four-story townhouse and embarked on a six-month restoration that was as sensitive as can be. They bolstered, fixed, and enhanced but \u201cwere careful not to alter the structure and detailing,\u201d says Chris, a furniture maker and owner of Isokon Plus, a company specializing in Bauhaus as well as contemporary furniture design.<\/p>\n

They did, however, have to add a kitchen (the building was most recently used as a lawyer\u2019s office and as such, lacked one), but even that was a relatively non-invasive procedure, thanks to Vipp\u2018s modular kitchen units. \u201cIt\u2019s the first kitchen I have ever bought,\u201d shares Chris, who had always crafted his own kitchens in his workshop. \u201cBut this house needed something else. . . . We fell for the industrial look that stands in sharp contrast to wooden doors and detailed ornaments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now that the townhouse has been restored and decorated (many of the artful furniture pieces are available at Isokon Plus), the couple are reveling in their new life\u2014and new passions. He\u2019s mastering the art of guitar-making and she\u2019s focused on textile design. \u201cInstead of spending the whole day nursing a garden like we used to, we can have our morning coffee in the local cafe\u0301s or eat out in the downstairs brasserie if we have spent long hours in our studios and are too tired to start cooking. It brings a certain freedom,\u201d says Lone.<\/p>\n

Ready for a glimpse of their slowed-down (but not too slow) life?<\/p>\n

Photography by Anders Hviid, courtesy of Vipp.<\/p>\n


Above: Lone and Chris McCarter with their granddaughter, Lily, on the front step of their home.
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Above: Three Vipp modules make up the kitchen. The legs can be adjusted, a useful feature when you\u2019re dealing with an uneven 700-year-old stone floor. The two lights are by Le Corbusier.,

Above: A vintage painted hutch offers a warm contrast in the kitchen. Note the 13-foot-high ceiling.
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Above: \u201cWe bought the kitchen in Denmark after having seen it in a magazine. Being half Danish, I do have a predilection for the design traditions and functional philosophy expressed in the Vipp kitchen and other Danish designs,\u201d says Lone.
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Above: In the dining room, vintage school chairs surround an oak dining table. The 1929 industrial pendant lights are from Chris\u2019s Isokon workshop.
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Above: The fireplace in the dining area is original to the home, built in 1200.,

Above: Several of the pieces in the living room are from Isokon Plus, including the Barber & Osgerby Loop Coffee Table and a custom side table.
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Above: The tiled floor is original to the home. The sofa is from Swedese.
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Above: A lamp from Knoll by Clay Mitcie sits on a cabinet from Isokon Plus.
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Above: A painting by Kate Blee hangs behind Spanish Chairs by B\u00f8rge Mogensen. Note the other piece of art in the room: a guitar made by Chris.
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Above: A peek into a quiet corner, anchored by a French garden table, in the office.,

Above: A peek from the landing into a bedroom.
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Above: In another bedroom, a John Lewis bed is dressed with Toast bedding.
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Above: The bathtub is from Jacob Delafon in Paris; the plywood chair is by Barber & Osgerby for Isokon Plus.
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Above: The couple have side-by-side studios (his for guitar-crafting, hers for textile-making). Pictured is Lone\u2019s workshop. <\/p>\n

For more French design inspiration, see:<\/p>\n