{"id":13443,"date":"2022-08-16T11:00:28","date_gmt":"2022-08-16T09:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesandantiques.com\/?p=33768"},"modified":"2022-08-16T11:21:12","modified_gmt":"2022-08-16T09:21:12","slug":"a-summer-house-renovation-in-italys-liguria-region","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/a-summer-house-renovation-in-italys-liguria-region\/","title":{"rendered":"A summer house renovation in Italy\u2019s Liguria region"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Molly Malsom\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 16 August 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Enrica Stabile\u2019s summer home in northern Italy couldn\u2019t be in a more beautiful location. Just across the border from France, and not far from the coast, the pretty village of Pantasina is tucked into the Ligurian hillside, surrounded by ancient olive groves. During the blisteringly hot summers, the proximity to the famous Gulf of La Spezia (or Gulf of Poets) is a gift \u2013 it\u2019s no surprise that this turquoise bay was once popular with the Romantic poet Lord Byron, as well as Italian scholars Petrarch and Montale. It\u2019s also where the poet Shelley tragically drowned in a shipwreck following a storm in 1822.<\/p>\n

Literary connections aside, Enrica was drawn to the area because of the stunning landscape, and she had long wanted to build a dream home of her own nearby.\u00a0 \u2018The view is terrific: a sea of olive trees with the coast in the distance,\u2019 she smiles. The project holds a special significance for Enrica as it was the last that she shared with her husband, who died a few years ago. They managed the entire build together, without the help of architects, and aimed to create the house in a way that was sympathetic to the history and traditions of the area.<\/p>\n

They painted the outside walls in a peachy pink to match other houses in the area, and sourced local materials from nearby craftsmen to build the roof and window frames. The project was long and arduous \u2013 not helped by the local carpenters insisting on frequent breaks during the regional hunting season. But, after just over a year, Enrica and her husband had created the summer home they had always longed for.<\/p>\n

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The house itself is of modest proportions and is divided into two apartments with separate entrances. The ground floor apartment has direct access to the sprawling gardens, while the top floor has its own terrace overlooking the sea, and this is Enrica\u2019s preferred spot. \u2018My favourite memories in the property are of eating outside on my sunny terrace,\u2019 she says. The two apartments are similar in structure: with a large central room working as a kitchen, dining room and living space. En-suite bedrooms sit at either end. But it\u2019s the upper apartment that Enrica favours as her ideal summer retreat.<\/p>\n

After many years of working as an interior designer and antiques dealer, Enrica has a talent for creating the right atmosphere in a space. \u2018It takes courage to kill your darlings, to eliminate those things you like so much but that just don\u2019t fit with the overall environment,\u2019 she says. Her business in Milan is called L\u2019Utile e il Dilettevole \u2013 which translates as \u2018the useful and pleasurable\u2019.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a sentiment that she has also applied to the decor in her summer home, which is a blend of stylish and useful pieces. She\u2019s proud of the fact that the house is difficult to define. And, although her antiques span many eras, they all have practicality in common \u2013 from the painted dresser-cum-bookshelf in the master bedroom, to the reclaimed industrial bobbin used as a dining table on the terrace. Enrica is a self-confessed lover of \u2018old stuff\u2019 and chooses to source pieces from both antiques dealers and flea markets. \u2018I like Gustavian and French Directoire pieces the most,\u2019 she explains. \u2018Lots of the antiques in the house are from the south of France, which I visit often.\u2019<\/p>\n

Other furnishings are a mixture of items from Enrica\u2019s previous homes, pieces inherited from family and things she sourced for her interiors business in Milan, but simply couldn\u2019t bear to part with. Most notably, there\u2019s the Gustavian sofa in the living room, which was initially bought for her shop. It\u2019s not especially comfortable, Enrica admits, but it\u2019s beautiful to look at.<\/p>\n

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However, perhaps the greatest constant in Enrica\u2019s home is her use of colour: soothing tones of blue, white and grey unify the rooms, creating a look that\u2019s cohesive and stylish. The jumping off point for this was the sofa in the living room. \u2018It was an old piece that belonged to my mother. She had covered it in a blue and white striped fabric, which was ideal for my colour scheme,\u2019 she says. \u2018I chose the palette very carefully as I wanted cool colours for a Mediterranean house.\u2019<\/p>\n

The various shades of blue are echoed most obviously in the open-plan living space, which includes an old family Bohemian chandelier made of cobalt crystal, reclaimed kitchen tiles found at a French flea market, and a set of rustic curtains, lovingly stitched together from blue-edged vintage tea towels. \u2018I love these colours,\u2019 explains Enrica. \u2018This mid-toned palette is comforting and keeps me in a good mood.\u2019<\/p>\n

Sadly, this may be Enrica\u2019s last summer spent at her Ligurian escape, as she feels the house is too big for her to live in alone, and her children aren\u2019t able to visit often enough to warrant the size. She is hoping to sell it soon and is already imagining building a small antiques-filled space for herself at the borders of the property. But she will always think of this house with fondness. While she and her husband had initially planned for a minimalist space in a single colour, their summer home developed into something far more meaningful. It became an exploration of her romantic nature, she says, and she filled it with the antiques that she loves. \u2018A house is like a safe haven,\u2019 she smiles. \u2018It must feel good as soon as you enter it, like putting on your favourite dress.\u2019<\/p>\n