Article published in Portal Menorca 2018 magazine

Written by Natasha Were

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The transformation of a simple Menorquin country house into a stylish, contemporary year-round abode.  

The transformation of a simple Menorquin country house into a stylish, contemporary year-round abode.  

The transformation of a simple Menorquin country house into a stylish, contemporary year-round abode.  

In 2014, a British couple who had been visiting the island for over 20 years and already owned a newly built property at the coast, decided to embark on a new venture: to turn a typical Menorquin house into their ideal island home. “Because we wanted something that we could use all year, we had a long – and we thought impossible – list of criteria,” they say. “We wanted a property in a village that had at least one bar and a shop to buy the papers; it had to have a garden or some land, and views of the sea, however distant, and we wanted an old, authentic Menorquin house.”

Much to their surprise, they found a property that ticked the right boxes almost immediately. Although it was barely habitable, with only the most basic electrical supply and no plumbing or sewage system to speak of, they could see the property’s potential immediately. 

The couple enlisted architect Nando Pons, whose work they knew and liked, to help them redesign the house, Luis Vallejo from Madrid to assist with the landscape design and Barcelona-based interior designer Teresa Ramallal for decoration and lighting.

Although renovation plans drawn up previously had allowed for a total of six bedrooms, the owners’ preference was for big, extravagant spaces. The architect, they say, likes to joke that they built a huge master suite with a small house attached. 

The impressive master bedroom remains in its original place, with the garage transformed into a sleek, modern dressing room and bathroom, complete with freestanding bath, twin vanities and a sofa. The attic space became the second bedroom; two small rooms were knocked through the make a cosy living room, and downstairs the small front door was removed and the replaced with the original large archway that lets the sunlight

pour in.

Old terracotta floors, false ceilings and cramped spaces were replaced with bright, airy rooms, bleached beams and pale floors. Antique floor tiles from the bedroom were relocated to the kitchen to give it just the right touch of rustic chic and pieces of furniture carefully selected. Outdoors an expansive sun terrace was built with a tranquil fountain at its centre and the once neglected, overgrown garden was tamed and planted with wild olives, carobs and endemic shrubs that partly conceal a serene lap pool. 

The result is a warm and welcoming home, where bright interiors embody a crisp, contemporary aesthetic, whilst the preservation of the original architecture ensures that the property’s quintessential Menorquin character remains undisturbed.