Both Malcolm, my partner, and I have done the big house thing and knew that we wanted somewhere slightly smaller now that our children have grown up," explains Joan Waldridge, standing in the kitchen of her pretty Buckinghamshire property. Complete with thatched roof and oak beams, it's easy to see why she fell in love with it. "One glance at its wonderful outlook over fields and I knew immediately that we would be happy here, but I did have to persuade Malcolm that we could make it into a welcoming home, as it was in desperate need of some love and attention," she adds.

Their first, and most important, task was to extend the property, so that they could replace the tiny, narrow kitchen. Joan, a retired Sales Director, and Malcolm, a magazine publisher, both love cooking and entertaining, so it was essential to create a larger room with ample space for friends who drop in for coffee or a glass of wine.

"As the cottage is Listed, our first step was to find a builder who would respect its heritage and know how to construct something sympathetic to the character of the existing structure. My bedtime reading had become The Thatcher, a magazine devoted to all things concerned with thatching," Joan admits. "I came across an advertisement for Andrew Creasey of Tain Craft, who is a specialist in historic properties and happened to be local. He's been brilliant. It's all been made with traditional methods and seasoned oak beams, and not only do we have double the amount of floor space, but we've a beautiful gallery above, with a shower room at one end."

left - A rustic and homely look is achieved with a neutral colour scheme, old Tuscan flooring and exposed brickwork.

right - The purpose-built rack holds 40 of the couple's favourite bottles of wine.