Home Style: She Rose

Thursday, 19 September 2024 08:00

Jo moved to the coast from south-east London, swapping her tiny former coach house with a studio for a solid five-bedroom Edwardian semi within walking distance of the sea-front

I’ll never move from here,” said artist Jo Oakley looking out across the neighbouring rooftops in the oldest part of Herne Bay. ‘’I’ve always been drawn to the sea and for years while my two daughters were growing up I had a beach-hut in nearby Whitstable, where we’d spend every weekend during the summer. Once the girls had left home, I started thinking about changing my own surroundings.

As much as I love Whitstable, property there is expensive, so I looked a little further afield and ended up buying a property in Herne Bay. It worked well as I had one room for a painting studio and another for my printing press and the attic at the top of the house became an Air BnB with visitors staying every weekend. There was a guest bedroom for friends and family, and I felt very happy and settled. Then my friend Ed called round to say that he’d just bumped into a mate who was clearing out his aged aunt’s house before putting it on the market. He asked whether I would like to walk round and take a look.”

By the following morning it was all change. “The old lady who had died had been born in that same house and had lived there all her life. The family had decided to sell the property, but they agreed to give me eight weeks grace before putting it on the open market. I called the estate agent that I had bought my own house and instructed them to put it on the market as quickly as possible. As luck would have it, the first people who walked through the door the following day said they wanted it and as they were renting there was no chain and everything fell into place without any holdups, which was amazing. Eight weeks later, I collected the keys to my new home, and moved into the town’s second oldest property dating from the early 1800’s.” Jo explained.

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During the 19th and early 20th century the building had consisted of a shop on the ground floor, which had been run as a grocer, and accommodation on the two floors above. There was also a large yard to the side of the house where there was a dilapidated building that had once served as a stable and shed for a horse and cart. Jo said, “The same family had owned the house since the 19th century, and little had been done to update it which was perfect as far as I was concerned. I parked my printing press in the shop part and got to work, ripping out the old bathroom and kitchen, but keeping any original fixtures and fittings that were integral to the history and character of the building and indeed the town.”

Jo said that she had decided to try and buy the property within ten minutes of first seeing it. She explained, “I’ve no idea why I wanted it so
much. Maybe subconsciously I saw its potential as a home and a business, but the fact that it has such strong links with the past was important too. While I had never planned to have a shop or a gallery, I’ve taught part-time throughout my career as an artist so the prospect of running workshops didn’t faze me.

Although the shop had been closed for decades, the original shop- fittings were still in situ, so the concept developed of selling gifts and homeware alongside prints, paintings and ceramics. I’d met other creative artists and makers by then and I knew some of them would be interested in teaching, while others would like to exhibit their work, so it didn’t take long to get the idea off the ground.”

Two years on, She Rose, as the gallery is known, has become a hub where the local community and those from further afield meet to attend workshops that range from print-making, basketry to candle- making. The building in the yard has been transformed into an airy Air BnB retreat, and the yard itself has also turned out to have unexpected potential. Jo revealed, “Once a month during the summer, a guest chef takes over the kitchen and the yard becomes a pop-up tapas venue. Luckily so far we’ve always had amazing weather and of course fabulous food.”

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Jo’s vision for her own living space was a matter of retaining the unique character of the building while giving it a much-needed update. She explained, “The kitchen and bathroom both required a complete overhaul – along with the plumbing and wiring. Structurally, the only major change I made was to demolish the crumbling kitchen extension and rebuild it on the same footprint to incorporate roof-lights, French windows into the courtyard, a cloakroom and utility room. Central to the kitchen design was to incorporate plenty of shelf and wall space to display the plates and jugs I’ve collected over the years. I bought my first 1930s ceramic vase in a jumble sale when I was twelve and I’ve gone on to acquire countless others. Favorite pieces tend to appear in my still life paintings, many of which have elements of landscape or seascape frequently included in the image.”

Jo has always been interested in period design and pattern and virtually everything decorative in the house has been upcycled from a previous life. “I haunt local junk shops, charity shops, auctions, jumble and car boot sales, always on the lookout for decorative pieces. The two Modernist stained-glass panels I found in a junk shop, long before I bought this house, but as soon as I climbed the stairs to the attic bedroom, I knew they’d look great set into the wall on either side of the door. Previously there was no electricity up there, so that’s an indication of just how little had been done to modernise the building, but reading in bed by candlelight was a step too far into the past, even for me!” Jo laughed.

An unusual feature in the dual aspect living room on the first floor is the original timber casing built to house the sun awning above the shop windows. “It lines the exterior walls of the room, so it’s a handy place for books and plants. The working fireplace was still in situ and the over- mantel mirror, that belonged to my long-gone Aunt Peg, looks as though it was made to go with it. When I cosy up in front of the fire on chilly evenings, I consider myself very lucky to have joined the long line of shopkeepers to have sat here in the same spot.” Jo said with a contented smile.

Photography: Andreas von Einsiedel/Living4media

Words: Amanda Harling/Living4media

She Rose, 165 Mortimer Street, Herne Bay, CT6 5HE

www.jooakley.co.uk

Home Style: She Rose

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