My name is Stéphanie Zwicky, I’m originally from Switzerland and I’ve been living in France for seventeen years now. I’m the mother of two children and I have been writing a fashion, decoration and beauty blog for fifteen years.

We left Paris nearly four years ago with a deep desire to slow down in our lives and to offer our children a lighter and more nature-oriented living environment. We were suffocating in Paris, which from my point of view was unsuitable for them. I grew up in the countryside in Switzerland and I have wonderful memories of it; I wanted my children to be able to experience that. Being close to the neighbours, having friends to play with in the street, going to school on foot or by bike, focusing on the seasons and having lots of animals, all of these encouraged us to leave the capital and make our dreams come true.

Living in the countryside is a bit like feeling you’re on holiday, knowing it’s possible to disconnect very quickly. I had the feeling of reconnecting with myself here, of being more aware of the things around me. It’s allowed me to find myself again, to take account of my own desires and to develop projects that have been important to me for a long time. I’ve gone back to playing sports regularly, and I consume differently, locally and essentially organically. Our family has returned to simpler and more spontaneous things.

To always savour the moment.

The house didn’t need very much work. It was in its original condition and without the modern conveniences for a family. Everything was already there. We took care of the insulation, installed an efficient heating system, created two bathrooms, and had all the electrical wiring redone. The idea was to go back to the original raw materials. The stone of the stairs was painted dark brown, as were the doors. We had the whole thing sandblasted just like the doors. We were able to keep almost all the floors; the former owners walked about without their shoes on so as not to damage them. A great opportunity! The walls were lined for insulation, and we had the mouldings and other woodwork removed to preserve the authenticity of the house. At the time, the living room was deliberately small to keep the heat in. As the house is large, we had half of the ground floor opened up to create a large 60 m² living room. The outside was in a sorry state: nature had taken over again, and brambles had invaded the garden (there more than a hectare to be re-tame!). During the clean-up, we discovered a little house of 60 m² at the bottom of the grounds. I’m a plant lover and I’d really like to create a greenhouse there. This is part of what we still have to do, along with creating a pergola around the swimming pool. In short, in such a big house, there’s always something to do.In fact, I’ve started renovating my shutters: there are 42 pairs to be repainted, I gave myself two years! (Laughs)

I wanted a real family home, warm, bright and welcoming. I wanted it to be the focal point for great parties inside and out! My strongest wish was to preserve the original beauty of the place without spoiling it.

All the woodwork was exposed by the sandblasting and we’ve kept as it is today. The stone floors have been cleaned and treated to regain the light, warm colour of the Burgundy stone. I also wanted to add colour to my living room and used an intense peacock blue: it looks wonderful in this huge room. My children’s bedrooms both have a wall painted in the Pantone colour for the year they were born. And the one in my bedroom is darker for a more cosy atmosphere, conducive to rest and relaxation.

I like to change my decor all the time. So I have fun with objects that come from Maisons du Monde, AMPM or even Casa Shop. For large pieces of furniture, we have been able to keep many family pieces, along with some antiques that have been in our families for several generations. Recently, I’ve been trying to invest more in designer pieces that we will be able to keep and look after. I particularly like the Bauhaus style.