As longer, lighter spring days entice us back outdoors, our Take Me To series stirs and grows new shoots.
Join us as we embark on a fresh tour of some of the most inspiring, imaginatively-designed destinations the British Isles have to offer – unique sanctuaries that invite adventures in nature…and also happen to house our land&water collections.
Take me to... locations
It’s not every day you get to make yourself at home in a building by one of the world’s most celebrated architects. But at Long House, set under the endless skies of the North Norfolk coast, the chance is yours.
Designed by Hopkins architects (the creative minds behind the Glyndebourne Opera House and the London 2012 Olympic Velodrome), Long House is one of eight remarkable holiday homes in the Living Architecture series, and the next stop on our Take Me To… tour.
By commissioning renowned architects to build thought-provoking rental properties in striking UK locations, Living Architecture is on a mission to make outstanding modern design more accessible. From artist Grayson Perry’s eccentric fairy-tale House for Essex to the soulful (and RIBA House of the Year shortlisted) Secular Retreat in South Devon, this brainchild company of author and philosopher Alain de Botton offers immersive and one-of-a-kind holiday experiences.
Ancient and modern
But back to Long House: a majestic yet minimalist barn-like building in the sleepy Norfolk hamlet of Cockthorpe. Looking out across creeks, salt marshes and verdant fields, Long House sits on grounds where a moated medieval manor house once stood.
Bringing ancient techniques bang up to date, the first thing you notice on approaching Long House is its imposing and traditionally crafted flint walls. Cleverly referencing the region’s many flint churches, barns and beaches, this tactile surface – in a muted spectrum of sandy ochres and fossil greys – embraces the structure and embeds it in the surrounding landscape.
Gardens strewn with wildflowers and mature apple, plum and hazelnut trees soften the building’s sharp edges, while ponies and sheep graze peacefully in the bordering meadow.
Inside, rustic, honest materials like lime render and exposed timber rub up against the clean-lined modernism of an enclosed spiral staircase, steel trusses and a bold strip of windows, resulting in a frisson of contrasting yet complementary design.
Infused with a “church-like calm” (The Guardian) and “lovingly mapped out to absorb the beauty of the local countryside” (Harper’s Bazaar), a spacious central hall flows effortlessly into an open-plan layout and galleried balcony that highlights the expansive coastal views.
Live and breathe
One of the largest Living Architecture properties, Long House holds ten comfortably. Gather with loved ones around the generous oval dining table, or while away summer nights in the semi-enclosed courtyards. In colder months, retreat indoors, draw a deep bath sprinkled with land&water salts, or cosy up with a book by the double-sided wood burner. When sleep beckons, take your pick from five ensuite, timber-lined bedrooms, each beautifully proportioned and detailed with bespoke furniture and Egyptian cotton bed linen.
A stay at Long House is also a chance to live amongst classic icons of contemporary design. The pared-back interior is brought to life with luminescent blue chairs by Eames, David Mellor kitchenware, sofas by Vitra, an oak Conran bookshelf, rugs by Allegra Hicks and industrial Artemide Tolomeo lights.
Out and about
All big-sky beaches, lolling seal colonies, fragrant pine forests and poker-straight horizons, the connection between land and water runs deep on this section of Norfolk’s famed North Coast. You can stretch your legs at Holkham sands, spot rare birds at Stiffkey Marshes, wander the picturesque streets of Wells-next-the-Sea or take a boat trip from Blakeney Point. In search of more leisurely pursuits? Fill a basket with fresh produce from the local butchers, bakeries, fishmongers and farm shops before cooking up a storm in the open-plan kitchen and toasting another perfect day at Long House.
And keep your eyes peeled for exciting new developments in 2024. “We’re currently looking at new ways that the homes can be enjoyed, such as events or meals. We’d love for people who haven’t had the chance to visit a house to experience it in a fresh light.” – Living Architecture
“The ethos of land&water fits with our deep love for the countryside in England and Wales, where all our homes are. We want sustainability at the core of hospitality.”
All Long House photography by Ollie Tomlinson for Living Architecture
PRODUCT ESSENCE OF LONG HOUSE:
Follow the call of the coast with our Explore Set.
Designed for freewheeling adventures in the wilds and speedy shoreside rejuvenation, dive into this travel-sized collection of our botanical body wash, natural hand gel, skin-smoothing lotion, fresh-mint shampoo and replenishing, citrus-infused conditioner. All wrapped up in a cotton land&water zip pouch, which, with its minimalist design and natural cotton material, is a perfect match for the elegant simplicity of the Long House interiors.
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