This farm near Harrogate is now a fabulous home and events venue

Renowned and much-loved painter, farmer and inventor of useful contraptions, Richard Snowden was a whirlwind of a man who had multitasking down to a fine art. However, he was also a realist who knew that his partner, Claire, an interior designer, wasn’t cut out for a life of growing fruit and veg.

So when he was given just months to live, he hatched a plan that has enabled her to convert his farm on the outskirts of Harrogate into a place that plays to her own talents.

Claire has used her design and organisational skills to transform the old barns into one of Yorkshire’s most spectacular and sought-after venues for weddings, private parties and corporate events.

The farmhouse, which hadn’t been renovated for 60 years, is now a des res for her and her son. It also doubles as a luxury AirBnB-style let where the bride and groom and their nearest and dearest can stay.

“When Richard got the diagnosis, he spent more time on his painting and we went travelling to places he’d always wanted to see,” says Claire. “At one point, he suggested that he could teach me farming but he knew it wasn’t going to happen.

“Instead, he told me to sell most of the farmland so I was left with 25 acres, the house and some derelict farm buildings. That’s what I did, though I didn’t really know what I was going to do with what was left.”

The decision to turn Wharfedale Grange into an upmarket venue was prompted by Harrogate Borough Council, which offered advice on new enterprise schemes.

“They sent someone out to see me and he knew we had hosted weddings in a marquee here before. They were really popular and helped supplement the income from the farm. He said it made perfect sense to build on that,” adds Claire.

Instead of a marquee, the council officer suggested she turn the redundant barns into an events space, though he could never have imagined that she would do so in such spectacular style. The vast barn interior is breath-taking. Designed by Claire, it houses her office, a huge main event/dining space, a separate bar plus Prosecco tap and a room where marriage ceremonies are performed.

Nature plays its part as the setting is glorious, just off the main Harrogate to Harewood road with beautiful rural views. “It has been hard work to get to this point but the feedback and interest has been amazing,” says Claire. “It helps that we are in a really good spot because it’s not out on a limb. It’s quick and easy to get a taxi from here and guests can stay in the hotels in Harrogate.”

Her 25 acres are not lying fallow. She has turned most of the fields into eco-friendly wildflower meadows. The flowers feed the floristry “shed” where Claire makes bouquets and displays for weddings and events. She sells the surplus crops to other floral designers.

While all looks beautiful and calm now, the project caused major stress after a financially devastating debacle. The first builder that Claire hired went into administration less than two months before the first wedding was booked. The money she had paid him up front went with him.

The venue was left unfinished and work on the farmhouse was abandoned, leaving it a structurally unsafe shell. “It was awful, both emotionally and financially, but I somehow managed to get through it and open the barn on time. The house took longer and I was left with basic facilities of one bedroom and a small kitchen area, but it’s done now,” says Claire.

The property, built in the 1700s, had been in Richard’s family since the 1930s and was effectively used as two homes. Everything needed doing from the roof to rewiring, replumbing and plastering. It is now more of a country house than a farmhouse.

The decor is cosy and opulent with a large kitchen dining space leading to an open-plan living area with velvet sofas. The walls, ceilings and skirting boards are in Farrow & Ball’s Hague Blue, enlivened with an eclectic mix of mirrors, pictures and quirky finds from Claire’s favourite stores, which include Rockett St George, Cox and Cox and Harrogate’s West Park Antiques.

There is a bedroom suite on the ground floor for when she gives her home over to guests. “I really wanted that so that people who are disabled or have mobility issues can stay here,” she says.

Upstairs there are five more bedrooms painted in Farrow & Ball’s Railings. All have bespoke headboards and are dressed in sumptuous, colourful fabrics, many of which were sourced from Designers Guild. Chandeliers bought from the Netherlands add sparkle. The ensuites have sanitary ware from Heritage Bathrooms and showers with contemporary Crittall doors.

“I’ve only recently moved back into the house and at the moment it feels like being on holiday,” says Claire, who has reminders of Richard everywhere via his vibrant paintings.

“He would have loved this venture. He was very sociable,” adds Claire, who is already thinking up new ideas. There is more scope here. I’d love Wharfedale Grange to become the equivalent of an exclusive holiday club like Soho Farmhouse.”

*Wharfedale Grange on Harrogate Road, Dunkeswick, LS17 9LW, is running an open day tomorrow, from 12-3pm, www.wharfedalegrange.co.uk