A téte a téte with Debbie Beard @Greenhithevillagehome
I connected with Debbie (Instagram: @greenhithevillagehome) through our mutual love of beautiful things and considered decorative choices within the home. Though initially a customer of Forage & Folk (you'll see quite a few vintage and antique pieces from our collections throughout Debbie's home) Debbie and I have enjoyed many lovely conversations around the joy of re-using and choosing one-off pieces, and quickly became firm friends. I really admire her considerate approach to interiors, and it was only natural that we sat down together with a steaming cup of something scrumptious to chat about her home journey.
Over the years, Debbie has been carefully and thoughtfully designing a home that showcases the best of artisanal makers, designers and small businesses. Having learned the hard way how challenging getting it wrong can be, Debbie is a passionate advocate of both a considered home and slow decor.
“Building a home is about taking your time, allowing yourself to feel drawn to things and feeling a genuine connection,” muses Debbie. “I want to come home to a space that I’m proud of, that reflects who I am and that isn’t a carbon copy of what everyone else is creating.”
With a keen interest in both interior design and interior photography, Debbie’s insta grid is an honest homage to her interiors journey; she’s not one to shy away from incorporating walls stripped back to bare plaster and awaiting renovation in her photographs, nor from sharing mistakes she’s made along the way. Rather, Debbie embraces her home throughout periods of change and, as home accounts go, @greenhithevillagehome is both refreshingly honest and awash with thoughtful and considered inspiration.
A high-powered career involving regular international travel meant that when Debbie was ready to put down roots 22 years ago, she had a really clear criteria for her future home. “I knew I wanted character in a property, and was keen on village life. As I was still travelling regularly and commuting to various airports at the time, location and logistics were vital. After some careful research, I fell in love with Greenhithe village in Kent, which offered an easy commute to London, lovely local landmarks, quaint country pubs and a wealth of characterful properties.”
When it came to securing a home in the village, it seems lady luck was smiling on Debbie when, after being told that no properties ever come on the market in Greenhithe, not one but two homes hit the market the very next day. Debbie joined at least a dozen other couples that evening to view the two properties, and, after falling head over heels for one of them, the rest, as they say, is history. Now, Debbie and her sweet little Dachshund, Cleo, are a firm fixture of village life in Greenhithe.
Although she loved the bones of the house, there were some changes that Debbie considered when she secured her new home. “I knew straight away that I wanted to build an L-shaped extension so there were clear zones within the house,” recalls Debbie, though she is glad she took some time to live in the house to get a feel for how it could best serve her needs. “You have to live in a home to understand how you use the rooms, and how the light works in the house seasonally.“
The second bedroom was originally a study, but due to the the lack of light Debbie found herself avoiding the space during the day and eventually the room was turned back into a guest bedroom.
When Debbie started taking more local contracts it felt like the right time to extend. Doing so has created a light, bright space for Debbie to put her stamp on. Not all of Debbie’s decorating decisions turned out to be the right ones, though, she admits.
“I have a painting hung on the wall that is really special to me, and I used it as a starting point for the colour scheme in one of the rooms in the house. I decided to paint the wall black, knowing it would either look really, really good or really, really bad. I didn’t know about using special undercoat for darker colours at the time, so it looked terrible!” Debbie laughs as she tells me it took four coats of white paint to cover up her mistake, but her takeaway was an important one.
“Cosmetic mistakes like paint colours that don’t work for you can so easily be covered up. If you have an idea, go for it - the worst thing that will happen is you’re not so keen and you just change it. It’s all part of the journey.”
Equally, if you want to get something right, Debbie stresses there is no shame in asking for help. “Tone can make all the difference in a space - whites, for example, have so many different undertones, and even the direction a room is facing can make a difference to how a colour will look on the wall,” Debbie explains. She worked with Neptune’s colour consultation services to help her pick out the perfect shades for her space, and found they helped her to broaden her horizons and consider colours she wouldn’t have otherwise thought to use.
Something I really love about Debbie’s home that shines through on her Insta squares is the personality and authenticity of her decor choices. “In an age where we are meant to be reducing waste, antiques offer the opportunity to add unique character to your home without compromising on the quality. I try to buy things that make me smile or have some kind of sentimental value”.
Favourite pieces include a brown leather hippo purchased from Liberty many years ago and gifted to her by her mother, and an original painting by a Spanish artist, as well as one of Forage & Folk's very own hand-stamped antique Chinese Yunnan pots with the thumb print from the individual who glazed the pot still visible some 200 years later. For Debbie, this individuality and organic connection to other human beings is what makes these items so special.
I love Debbie’s home and the woman behind the account. Refreshingly honest, the loveliest of souls and a real advocate for learning and developing, she’s one to follow. You can check out more of Debbie’s beautiful home at @Greenhithevillagehome.