Setting up a new home and business – a boutique B&B

THE FUTURE’S BRIGHT

Joe and Emily Reilly left London to set up an architecture and interior design business in the coastal village of St Agnes, Cornwall – renovating their own cottage along the way

WORDS ALICE WRIGHT PHOTOGRAPHS ANYA RICE

‘Our working day often depends on what the tide’s doing,’ says Joe Reilly, who heads out for a morning surf whenever possible. Alternatively, the couple might take their baby Ozzy for a stroll along the coastal path before firing up their laptops. It’s a far cry from their previous 45-minute commute through London, and it was a desire for a radical shift in lifestyle that inspired the Reillys to quit their jobs in the capital and move to Cornwall.

Joe, an architect, and Emily, an interior designer, grew up in Leicestershire and Dorset respectively before heading to London, where they met. But after several years there, they began to tire of city life, and fell in love with St Agnes on holidays in Cornwall. Aside from its enviable position on the North Cornish coast, the vibrant year-round community appealed to the young couple. ‘There are so many passionate, interesting people here, living an amazing quality of life, and we wanted a slice of it,’ explains Emily. So in 2016 they decided to move down and set up their own business, Coal Cornwall.

They knew they wanted a home within walking distance of the village and the sea. The first place they saw was a two-bed terraced cottage in the hamlet of Goonbell, on the outskirts of St Agnes. The surrounding area has a rich mining history and the lane running by the front of the house was once the route to the local tin mine. Although charming, like many of its type, the building was dark and cramped. The previous owners were an elderly couple who had lived there for 30 years, and the interior was ‘fairly grim’, Emily recalls.

Living the coastal dream: Joe, Emily and baby Ozzy have embarked on a new life they love in Cornwall

The cosy and vibrant

living room FAR RIGHT

The family outside their St Agnes home

A PUNCHY PALETTE

But seeing its potential, they bought the cottage and set out to transform it. Two years on it’s a much lighter, more modern space that sings with colour, but retains the original character. Downstairs a wall and arches that had split the kitchen and living areas is gone. They put in a new kitchen, re-positioned the previously boxed-in stairs, and moved the boiler from above the stairwell to give more height. They demolished a conservatory to let in light and make the courtyard garden bigger.

Upstairs the pair expanded the master bedroom, borrowing from the bathroom – which they have converted into a shower room with a generous skylight. The bedroom boasts a freestanding pink bath and they’ve installed a big yellowframed window, from Danish company Velfac, which faces west towards the sea. They don’t have a sea view, but, says Joe ‘you get a sense of it – especially when it’s stormy and the skylight and the bedroom window get battered’.

Emily and Joe have brought the coast indoors using colour, with the sea and the yellow gorse that carpets the Cornish coastline providing the starting points for a striking palette. Emily wanted to step away from the muted tones often associated with coastal décor, looking instead to the vivid hues of the local landscape – from the ever-changing sea to mineral colours running through the rocks.

LET THE LIGHT IN

They painted the wall by the stairs in a turquoise limewash by Bauwerk. ‘It’s called Copper, inspired by the vibrant copper ore pigments in the rocks around Trevaunance Cove and Trevellas,’ says Emily. Its textured surface intensifies the colour. The play of light throughout was important – while some walls have a matt finish, they chose gloss varnish for the yellow accents and the blue showerroom wall to provide contrast and to bounce and reflect light.

Although Emily and Joe had a vision before they began work, they adapted to the building as it revealed its character. They had intended to paint ceiling beams downstairs white, but after stripping them back found they preferred the exposed wood. Other decisions were inevitably influenced by budget – they wanted to take out another wall downstairs but it would have been too costly and complex. Instead they punched out a circle

A focal point in the bright kitchen, the Belfast sink came from a reclamation yard

to open it up, painting the rim yellow. It’s now a feature they love.

The couple hired a builder, but a limited budget of around £25,000 meant they also had do much of the work themselves. Their skills were put to good use designing and fitting the kitchen, which was made from pieces of cut-to-order plywood. They used the same system for the plywood storage unit in the dining area. Other jobs, such as levelling the downstairs floor sand laying the Douglas fir floorboards, were more of a challenge. ‘We watched a lot of YouTube tutorials,’ they laugh.

Some furniture they bought cheap and painted, but they also commissioned pieces from local Cornish craftspeople. The dining table was custom-made from a piece of ash, with legs crafted by a welder up the road. The sofa frame was made by a local carpenter, and they sewed their cushions using a cotton blend fabric called Linara in Indigo, from Romo. On a trip to India, they bought handwoven cotton dhurrie rugs, as well as many of the trinkets on their shelves.

A BALANCED LIFE

At the same time, Joe and Emily started to win clients for their business. They have a steady stream of work, from planning drawings to interior design commissions. Their dream is to see one big project through from start to finish, but they’re happy with how the business is growing. ‘And it’s much more enjoyable here,’ says Emily. ‘Clients are friendlier and more relaxed. And at the end of the day we go to the

ABOVE The custom-made ash dining table sits on legs welded by a local craftsman

beach to unwind.’ That work/life balance became ever more important last August, when Ozzy was born. Working for themselves meant that Joe and Emily could be very present during his early months. And village life is just as they hoped, too. ‘The sense of community that we felt here was a huge part of choosing St Agnes,’ says Emily. ‘Everyone is so friendly and welcoming.’

It seems they’ve achieved the relaxed coastal lifestyle they dreamed of during those London commutes, and they’re excited to share it with their little boy. ‘He’s going to have an awesome life,’ says Emily. Joe adds: ‘It’s been worth making the move. Being able to set our own hours and to be around for Ozzy – you can’t really put a price on that.’

For more on the couple’s business, call 07854 011869, see coalcornwall.com, or email hello@coalcornwall.com.

EMILY & JOE’S WEEKEND

• For surfing or walking, you can’t beat Chapel Porth beach at low tide (nationaltrust.org. uk/chapel-porth). • Watch the sunset at St Agnes Head, a dramatic heathland with spectacular views and clifftop mine ruins (nationaltrust. org.uk/st-agnes-head). • Have lunch or coffee and cake at Canteen at the Wheal Kitty Workshops in St Agnes. Open Mon-Fri (07432 641941, canteencornwall.com). • For dinner and drinks try Schooners at Trevaunance Cove, featuring local produce and craft beers (01872 553149, schoonerscornwall.com). • Go for a walk around the fishing village of Porthleven. Have a pint in the 17-century Ship Inn (01326 564204, theshipinnporthleven.co.uk).

THIS PAGE The yellow accents run right through the cottage, including in the master bedroom ABOVE, CENTRE Emily, Joe and Ozzy enjoying a stroll on Trevellas Porth

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