Home is where the hearth is

Not only did it feel just right, there have been a series of quirky coincidences since they moved in. None more striking than being offered not one but two fireplaces that had disappeared from the house 40 years ago.

“When we were doing the house up someone stopped me in the street and told me he had the original fireplace in his shed. It had almost been put on a fire in the 1970s. A lady had rescued it and he was storing it for her. So we bought that one and reinstated it,” she says.

“The woman’s brother had the other fireplace in the dining room of his house in Cheshire. He called me up and told me he would leave it to me in his will and he did just that. It was lovely of him to remember.”

The fireplaces found their way back home at just the right time.

After being tenanted by farmers for decades, the 18th century property had just been renovated and care had been taken to preserve and restore the remaining period features.

The Buchanans, who moved in seven years ago, worked with their landlord, the Duchy of Lancaster to re-roof and update the heating, wiring and plumbing and restore the original decorative plasterwork. They also took out partition walls upstairs to bring the bedrooms back to their original size. The grade two listed house is now the perfect home for the couple and their three sons, Hugh, 13, Charlie, 11, and Zander, four.

The rooms are spacious and the stairs wide enough for sledging down on trays. With three floors, it’s also fabulous for hide and seek.

Fortunately, Marion isn’t too precious and she has designed the interior to withstand the knocks.

The flooring is hard-wearing and the walls have been painted with Farrow and Ball throughout.

The kitchen was handmade by joiner Matthew Rohan, who also made a matching table to Marion’s design.

The furniture is a mix of family pieces and buys from The French House in York, which is where many of the beds are from. There are also finds from Tennants of Leyburn and Indigo Interiors in Malton.

Favourite fabrics are from Osborne and Little, while soft furnishings were made by local maker Jackie Farnell. The large floor cushions are from Covelli Tenant, who fashion them from vintage textiles.

Art is another passion and the walls are adorned with everything from a wall hanging from The Rug Company, posters featuring Victor’s idol Elvis and Marion’s role model Wonder Woman, a painting by friend James Wedge plus lots of framed photographs.

“Art is really important to me, which my mother is amazed by. She used to drag me to galleries when I was a child and I’d moan, but something must have registered,” says Marion, who grew up in Scotland.

Her interest in art and design has helped boost the family businesses, The White Swan in Pickering, and its new and neighbouring deli and café Feast, which is the only place outside London to sell the famous Ginger Pig meat and sausages, which are produced locally.

The White Swan has always been feted for its food and now it is famed for its atmospheric country cosy meets contemporary rooms designed by Marion.

Victor, who worked in the City, and Marion, who was in recruitment, gave up their careers in London in 1996 to run the hotel, which was previously owned by Victor’s parents.

“My parents-in-law are real career hoteliers and met at the Scottish Hotel School. They took what was a traditional pub and introduced finer dining.

“They also gave all the bedrooms their own bathrooms, which was unusual in the 1980s,” says Marion.

The latest generation has taken the baton and run with it by revamping the interior and expanding the number of rooms to 21 by converting the stable block at the back of the hotel.

“Our previous jobs helped. I used my recruitment background to employ some fantastic staff, who have now been with us for years. Victor’s great with the figures so he looks after the money side of it,” says Marion.

“What has surprised me most is that it really brought out a love of project management and interior design even though it was hard work at first.

“Hugh had only only just been born when we took over so I redesigned the hotel with a newborn baby on my hip.”

The hotel is like her farmhouse, homely and stylish and full of little surprises, like the tartan carpet and antique and vintage treasures.

“I love finding things that are a bit different, and opening Feast has been great because we’re also selling gifts and bits of homeware, which I really enjoy sourcing,” she says.

The Buchanans are also considering more expansion at the back of the White Swan and Feast, which are close enough to home to be on hand and far enough way to escape work.

“I just adore living in this house,” says Marion. “And I think we are really lucky to have found it. The boys love it too.

“We joke that it’s been here for 350 years, but it may not survive the Buchanan boys.”

Marion’s useful contacts

The White Swan, Pickering, www.white-swan.co.uk, tel: 01751 472288

Feast, www.feastpickering.co.uk

The French House, York, www.thefrenchhouse.co.uk

Vaughan Designs for lighting, www.vaughandesigns.com

Osborne and Little for fabrics, www.osborneandlittle.com

DL Upholstery, Snainton, near Scarborough, tel: 01723 850792

Jackie Farnell soft furnishings, Thornton-le-Clay, www.jackiefarnell.co.uk, tel: 01653 619001

Kitchen and joinery by Matthew Rohan, www.rohanwoodworking.co.uk

Artist james Wedge, www.jameswedge.com

Vintage cushions and textiles by Covelli Tennant, www.covellitennant.com

The Rug Company wall hanging, www.therugcompany.info