Well PRESERVED

For interior designer Andrew Fossey, weekends at the newly restored period home in the Essex countryside he shares with his university-lecturer husband, Andrew, usually revolve around cooking, including jam and chutney-making, and entertaining family and friends. Much like the seasonal ritual of transforming fruits into preserves, the house has changed and developed a distinct flavour over the years.

‘It needed to be saved and ever so gently brought into the 21st century without destroying its quirks and patina’

“The Lodge is a former farmhouse that has evolved since the 1570s,” Andrew says. “Every few generations, good