Inside a Beautiful Peak District Stone Cottage Renovation

This month, we are taking a behind the scenes look at this beautiful Peak District cottage renovation.

The Peak District is one of the most scenic areas of England, with rural villages, wide views and traditional stone-built homes.

Katherine and James bought their cottage in 2019 and spent lockdown changing the layout, knocking down walls and giving it a complete makeover.

Read on to see how they modernised the cottage while retaining its period character.

Period stone cottage

Peak District National Park

Traditional window fasteners

Cottage History

Wheelwrights Cottage is a classic stone-built property with a wealth of history, dating back to the 1800s.

Originally, it was the place in the village where the wheelwright made and repaired wooden wheels.

In more recent decades, the cottage was the undertakers.

Local residents and neighbours told Katherine and James how they used to peep through the windows as children to try and see bodies and ghosts.

Thankfully, the cottage is now completely ghost free.

Renovation Plans

Even before viewing the property, Katherine and James knew they would need to reconfigure the downstairs layout.

There was a huge 7.5 metre lounge area and a small kitchen that needed modernising.

They studied the floor plans and decided to create a smaller, cosier living room and a large open-plan kitchen dining area.

As a finishing touch, James added faux stone wall sections to the kitchen diner.

Inspired by the local Peak District setting and the exterior walls, he used sandstone cladding to add texture and character.

Knocking through the kitchen wall

New open plan kitchen diner

Cottage Style

When first viewing the property, Katherine and James fell in love with the original cottage features, especially the traditional casement windows and exposed beams.

"Seeing that beautiful 200 year old beam, we just knew it had to be in our bedroom."

Their plans focused on creating a layout better suited to modern living while retaining the property's original character.

A quirky outcome of the project is the freestanding bath in the main bedroom.

The idea came about after the upstairs layout was changed. The main bedroom ensuite was reduced to make the third bedroom a more practical size.

As the main bedroom is a large double room, Katherine and James decided to fit the bath in there.

The only complication was getting the new bath up the stairs.

Due to Covid restrictions, the bath could only be delivered downstairs. Thankfully, James and his friend managed to manoeuvre all 85kg of the bath into place.

"People said we were mad to have a bath in the bedroom, but we use it all the time. It makes us feel like we're in a hotel."

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Original exposed beams

Bedroom bath feature

Classic Cottage Style Features

• Stone features
• Exposed original beams
• Faux beams or natural wood details
• Ledge and brace doors
• Traditional ironmongery
• Classic shaker kitchen

Traditional Ironmongery

Black hand forged ironmongery is a classic choice for cottages and period homes, complementing traditional timber doors and exposed beams.

Cast iron and hand forged window and door furniture is based on authentic period designs and adds an important finishing touch to a project.

For the downstairs ledge and brace doors, Katherine and James fitted Suffolk latches and traditional T hinges.

Upstairs, the look is a little different. Katherine felt wooden doors would be too much against the wooden flooring, so she chose painted panelled doors and antique brass beehive door knobs.

The brass knobs complement the nickel beehive cabinet knobs in the kitchen.

The overall look gives a rustic feel to the downstairs rooms and a softer cottage style upstairs.

Classic cast iron coat hooks

Antique Brass Beehive Door Knob

Hand Forged Latch & Hinges

Renovation Tips & Advice

Katherine and James completed most of the renovation work themselves and spent a long time studying plans and designs.

They shared these tips for anyone thinking about a similar project:

• Do not try to cut corners.
• Reuse where possible. For example, kitchen carcasses can be updated with new doors and cupboard hardware.
• Spend money on quality items where the difference can be seen and felt.
• Fit essentials as soon as possible. Katherine and James delayed fitting the log burner and regretted it after a chilly winter.

Suffolk Latch Black - £22.00

Thank You

Thanks for joining us on this month's House Tours.

A big thank you to Katherine and James for sharing their beautiful home.

Follow them on Instagram @at_our_peak to see more photos and behind the scenes updates.

Look out for next month's House Tours, when we will be visiting a modern makeover in an urban setting.

*Please note prices of products quoted are accurate at the time of article publication but may be subject to change.*