Vintage on Sea

Feature 13595342 | © living4media / Narratives / Sanderson, Robert | 31 images

Claire Goddard’s childhood dream has been fulfilled with a sledgehammer and a whole load of salvage in her Cumbrian island home. Three years ago, part-time vintage dealer and upcycler Claire Goddard and her husband Steve (an assistant manager at the local shipbuilding company) decided that rather than downsizing after their four children (Oliver, Jacob, Harry and Millie) had left home, they’d instead make Claire’s childhood wish come true in their existing Cumbrian home. ‘I’d always dreamt of having a welcoming rustic kitchen that had a real fire, a scrubbed pine table and a comfy sofa, ’ she reveals, ‘so we decided to stay put and knock down a couple of walls to create a much larger room where I can indulge my passions for cooking, baking, sewing and reading; one that can easily be transformed into a workshop for my Thriftwood Vintage projects when the weather won’t permit me to paint outdoors, or a sociable entertaining space when the children come back to visit with friends and partners – I love that they relax instantly into “holiday mode” as soon as they walk through the door.’