​When Susan and Bob Goss-Clements want to escape the stress of working life, they simply pack their bags and head for their pretty seaside cottage on the Yorkshire coast. Hannah Morgan went to see what makes it so special . . .

The picturesque seaside cottage

Susan Goss-Clements is a great believer in the power of positive thinking, so when she was gazumped over her dream coastal cottage on the day she was due to sign the contract, she knew something better would be just round the corner.

And she was right. Another cottage, just metres from the beach and ripe for renovation, came up for sale in a quiet fishing village north of Whitby in North Yorkshire.

“I cut my teeth on renovations so I wasn’t put off by the amount of work that needed doing,” said Susan. “The sale went through without a hitch and the builders moved in almost straight away.”

Over the next six weeks, the three-storey house was completely transformed from an unmodernised, unremarkable house, into a charming seaside home filled with light and stylish furniture inspired by its coastal location.

Rumour has it that when the house was built 100 years ago, a local builder and an architect had a bet that they could fit six cottages on a small site, and that each one would have sea views.

Time had taken its toll on the property, however, and Susan, with her husband Bob, started by having the house rewired, central heating installed and repairs done to the roof and chimney. They had the kitchen floor dug up so they could lay a damp proof membrane, and a damp, cramped room once used as a coal bunker was turned into a stylish shower room. Fireplaces came out to be replaced with stylish surrounds, the bathroom was tiled and fitted with large mirrors to make it look lighter and bigger, and the kitchen units were given a painted facelift.

An old gas fire was taken out and replaced with a limestone fire surround

“Every room in the house was done,” said Susan. “We took it back to a shell and built it back up again.”

Susan and Bob wanted to create a look which was timeless, elegant and easy to maintain. They divide their time between the cottage and a house in Harrogate, and let the cottage out when they are not using it themselves, so it had to be easy to look after.

“When we come here we slow right down because it’s so calm and peaceful,” said Susan. “Even the colour scheme is calm. I love greys, greens and creams. I like painted furniture and that gentle New England look.”

To make sure she achieved the ambience she wanted, Susan created a “story board” for each room, choosing fabric swatches, furniture ideas and paint colours which would create a neutral backdrop for the furniture and accessories.

“The look evolved gradually,” said Susan. “I bought bits and pieces from auctions and antique shops, finding things we both liked and slowly developed each room. The beds were a challenge because the rooms are quite small and it was difficult to know how to position them so there was still room to walk round each side, but on the whole the house dictated its own look.”

Susan, Bob and 10-year old daughter India started living in the house as soon as the building work was completed and love the fact that it’s a complete antidote to their stressful working lives.

Susan wasn’t afraid to make statement by using large pieces of furniture

“We switch off the minute we walk through the door,” said Susan. “We want our daughter to grow up enjoying the kind of lifestyle I remember as a child, when we would spend hours walking along the beach, building camp fires on the shore and watching the boats coming in, or reading a good book by the fire on a wet wintry day. We can do that here. It’s a place where time slows down.”

The Beach House is available for holiday lets. Contact: 01423 339725 or  07719 569088.