Chateau de la Ruche | Maru Photography
In 2017 Tim and Rebecca Jones and their sons Rufus and Laurie moved from their home in Stamford, UK to the Château de la Ruche in France. In just three years, the Jones family has transformed the 14 bedrooms Château into a beautiful place for guests to get away from their everyday lives, and experience French country life. The château is nestled in the midst of 15 acres of lush parkland and woodland and this coming October, Rebecca will be hosting RAW & Gather where attendees can learn the art of photography from Kim of Maru Photography and floral design from international florist/flower whisperer Polina of Da Fiori Designs.
When you first bought the Château with your husband, did the previous owners leave anything behind or did you have to start from scratch?
When we bought the Château, the previous owners had owned it for over 50 years and it has been in their family for several generations. They asked us if we wanted them to either clear everything or leave everything – of course, we asked them to leave everything! We were moving from a four-bedroom house into a 14-bedroom Château so we needed any furniture we could get our hands-on. They took a few items that had sentimental value but left us with everything else – lots of big and beautiful armoires, some old mirrors, lots and lots of beds, a huge dining table, and some Louis XVI chairs and a sofa. Amongst the lovely stuff was also a lot of junk (which we knew was the deal), we spent the first month or so after we arrived clearing out rooms, getting rid of old mattresses, emptying cupboards, and cleaning.
Rebecca Jones
What was the biggest cultural challenge you had to deal with when you moved from England to France?
Despite England and France being close neighbors and having a very closely entwined history dating back centuries, it’s been so interesting to live long term in another culture and really experience it. The French are very protective of their traditions, which I love. Lunch is at midday and it’s an hour and a half or two hours long. The shops shut so that everyone can have a proper meal. In the UK we’re lucky to get half an hour to eat a sandwich. It took us a while to get used to it, but now we know to plan our days and shopping trips around that two-hour repose in the middle of the day instead of being caught out by it. The language has also been tricky for us – our children Rufus (9) and Laurie (7), picked it up so quickly and are now bilingual, but for us grown-ups it’s trickier. I can get by and make myself understood, but I’m a long way from being able to have a good relaxed chat with my French friends.
The Honey Suite | Maru Photography
Out of the three suites, which one did you finish the interior design for first, and what are some of the brands you worked with to create the suite guests can stay in today?
The first suite we finished was the Honey Suite, which is a really calming suite decorated in soft neutral tones. It has double aspect windows looking out over both the front lawns and the back flower-meadow and our avenues of lime trees down towards the woods.
The walls are painted in Slipper Satin by Farrow and Ball and the bed I rescued from a brocante for €50 and reupholstered myself in simple oatmeal linen. I made pillows in a sweet bee print fabric by Peony and Sage. We use bedding from The WoolRoom which is made from British Sheep Fleece which is naturally allergen-free and sustainable too and our guests always comment on how lovely it feels, keeping them warm in winter and cool in summer. And our sheets are crisp 300 thread count ethically sourced cotton from Tielle Love Luxury.
The furniture in our rooms is all sourced from brocante and flea markets – I always get left with a tiny amount to find furniture and finish the rooms, so I tend to pick up bargains when I see them.
The bathroom has a beautiful slipper bath and I turned an old dressing table into a vanity unit with an antique mirror above and some gorgeous Palazzo tiles from Fired Earth in the UK. I like to mix English and French styles and brands because we feel a little bit a part of each country now.
How would you describe the style of decor throughout the Château?
I would describe our style as a laid-back luxury – we lovely everything to look beautiful, but we want our guests to feel at home. I want people to get here and instantly feel relaxed, they should feel like they can curl up on the sofa with a book, wear their slippers down to breakfast and really kick back and have a good time. We don’t do perfection; old furniture is naturally weathered and I think this really helps our guests feel at home.
There is nothing corporate or minimal about the Château or the B&B and I think it really works to make people feel like they are visiting friends in their home – which in fact they are.
The Garden Room | Rebecca Goddard Photography
In addition to the three suites inside the Château de la Ruche, there is also a gite you are restoring that was once inhabited by a man named Maurice. How are the renovations coming along for the gite and when do you hope to have it open for guests?
The gîte is a labor of love. We are trying to keep and restore as many of the original features as we can and this takes time. Our progress has been slowed significantly by the coronavirus and the associated lockdowns, but it has also taken the pressure off slightly too. We no longer have any help from tradesmen, friends, or family so we are just getting on as best we can ourselves. I’m actually really enjoying working on the project. I’m usually so busy with guests that I don’t have time to help as much as I’d like. I’m currently working on cleaning up the old tommett floor tiles that we took up from the original gite floor so that I can relay them and they look so beautiful. I can’t wait to see it finished. We’re hoping it will be ready for June – lockdown permitting of course.
To see the progress of the gîte follow along on Instagram… updates are listed in the saved stories under Maurice’s House.
Rebecca Goddard Photography
Where are some of your favorite places near the Château that you suggest to guests who want to go out exploring?
Le Mans, our local city (25mins away), is world-famous for its racetrack, but they really should shout about its beautiful Plantagenet old town with its timber-framed buildings, twisting cobbled streets, art galleries, and cafes. The cathedral is magnificent and every Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday there is a big market selling great fresh produce. I love to buy a croissant and sit at one of the cafes in the square with a coffee and people watch.
Many of our guests love antiques and we have a list of our favorite local brocante shops and flea markets that we share with those who come to stay with us so that they can be sure to find a few bargains.
We are also situated nicely between Laval, Angers, Tours, and Saumur all of which are beautiful to visit as well as many of the Loire Valley Châteaux. There are also some beautiful vineyards which are an easy drive for a day out.
Closer to home is an area called the Alpes Mancelles which is full of pretty little French villages, one of which, Saint Ceneri le Gerei, has been named as one of the most beautiful villages in France. It’s lovely for a drive through rolling countryside.
Maru Photography
The upcoming retreat, Raw & Gather France 2020 in October sounds amazing. Have you worked with fine art photographer Kim of Maru Photography and international florist/flower whisperer Polina of Da Fiori Designs previously?
Kim and Polina and I worked together on RAW & Gather last October and it was so lovely and so much fun. Kim and I met accidentally through Instagram when Kim tagged our Château in a post by mistake. It happened twice thanks to autocorrecting and we got to chatting, Kim introduced me to Polina, we all realized we had a lot in common and decided to run a retreat together here. It’s such a lovely accidental friendship – I wish they lived closer.
What should attendees expect from the retreat experience?
RAW & Gather is such a special few days. It’s really relaxed and gentle, we forage for flowers and foliage in the château grounds, Polina teaches everyone to create beautiful arrangements with them using environmentally friendly techniques, Kim shows us all how to capture the fabulous autumn light here so we can capture our own flowers and gathering at home. And we feast and gather and generally have an amazing time.
Feasting was such a big part of the retreat last year that I’m now going to be teaching a little cooking class in the beautiful French farmhouse kitchen we’re creating in the gîte. We will mooch around the local market for ingredients and perhaps do a little foraging too. Then we’ll cook together, style our gathering table and eat together, sharing stories and experiences over a glass or two of local wine. It really is a lovely few days.
The Château de la Ruche is situated on 15 acres of wild parkland and woodland, and I love some of the stories you’ve shared about your walks around the property. What do you enjoy most about being surrounded by such natural beauty?
The grounds here are a big part of what drew me to the château. I fell in love with the tree-lined driveway the minute I saw it. I love the peace of our surroundings, I love the fact that the house is hidden in the trees, so secluded that even some of the local villagers didn’t know it was here. If I feel stressed or overwhelmed, I go for a walk in the woods or across the fields and I’m soon much calmer again. It’s something I’ll never take for granted.
On your Instagram, you’ve shared a highlight featuring the Golden Gate to Nowhere. Was the gate on the property when you purchased it, and if so what are some of the other finds you’ve made during the restoration process?
The Gate to Nowhere was here, standing proud where it is now when we first saw the house. I glimpsed it as we passed it on the drive and I fell in love with it. I love the romance of it, the fact that it just stands there alone, not really leading to anywhere but to a tangle of trees. It felt like something from a novel.
We’ve found so many things during the renovations, old books full of school notes, newspapers from the outbreak of the second world war, a hidden door in a wall that now leads into the Garden Room bathroom – the gaps stuffed up with old newspaper clipping and letters from 1880. Occasionally I’ll open a draw or a cupboard and find something new. I often wonder when the last discovery will happen, hopefully not anytime soon.
Rebecca Jones
Website: https://chateaudelaruche.com // Instagram: @chateaudelaruche
Book your stay at the Château de la Ruche here.
Photo credits include: Maru Photography, Rebecca Goddard Photography, and Rebecca Jones
Would love to stay here someday. So beautiful!