This month marks the beginning of a year of celebration, as we honour a quarter century of Unique Homestays. So who better to dedicate our first owner chronicle of the year to than Unique Homestays’ very own founder, Sarah Stanley. Here, Sarah invites us into her countryside Cornish manor, Coswarth, revealing how personal experience has been key to shaping both her business and home.
Coswarth has all the hallmarks of a quintessential English country house. A rich history dating back to Domesday, a sweeping driveway, a grand, stone exterior and acres of grounds freckled with vibrant flower beds and manicured lawns – stirring visions of ballgowns and croquet. Inside, chandeliers, velvet curtains and brassware continue the manor’s air of suitable formality; yet the space feels wholly rooted in authenticity. A place where it doesn’t matter if muddy wellies lie drunkenly beside the door, if ash from the fire leaves a sooty dusting on the flagstones, or if a butter-smeared knife remains on the side in case a second helping of toasted saffron cake is later required. A home.
After decades living in a cottage, now the Unique Homestays office, it was time for Sarah to upsize. She yearned for a place that had ample space for her and her family, extensive gardens where her creative juices could flow as a keen gardener, and offered peace and privacy. “It was actually my niece that discovered the house for sale,” she explains. “One thing I really loved about the house was that I could have a big kitchen. My parents were farmers and the door was always open.”
Overseeing the estate's three-year renovation after purchasing it in 2020, meant that Sarah was able to achieve her desire to emulate her childhood growing up on a Cornish farm, surrounded by family. Converting once-derelict barns into homes for two of her adult children, installing woodburners throughout the Grade II-listed manor to bring cosiness on cold winter evenings and, of course, creating her dream convivial country kitchen where her family largely mingle. “Growing up, my mum was always cooking and baking, and we had a lot of parties,” Sarah recalls. “And I really wanted to have that same sort of feel. The house really lends itself to that.”
The second floor of the manor house was also carefully reconfigured – six bedrooms were converted into four luxury doubles with en suites; the blush-pink master overlooking the front garden and grand terraced steps, and with a statement bathtub large enough it would seem to practice lengths in. “It was important to find a space in which I can grow old with my children around me,” Sarah adds. “It’s nice to have a house big enough for extended families.”
Downstairs, the real star of the show is the formal sitting room; in a delectable blend of olive green and peach pink – colour choices that are used throughout the estate, and are both simultaneously classic yet striking. “It stands out,” Sarah notes about the room. Complete with original mullioned windows, hanging tapestries, an original open hearth posing as the heart of the room, and bold sofa choices including a mustard-yellow chesterfield and velvet two-seater with fringing. “It’s different and grand. We all congregate here after dinner, with the fire going.”
It comes as no surprise that Sarah would stand enriched with ideas about how to design an inspiring home to call her own after 25 years dedicated to curating a list of the UK and Ireland's most unique, soulful rental homes, following transformative years experiencing the likes overseas. “Having been privileged to see many an inspirational home through my work over the years, I had a wealth of concepts to work with, but still every design decision was carefully pored over and considered,” she explains. “I wanted to ensure that the character of the house could shine, while adapting the layout to suit how I live.”
Idiosyncrasy and individualism are key to the Unique Homestays brand, which explains some of Sarah’s more quirky additions accumulated during her time scouring antique markets and reclamation yards. A wooden pig in the kitchen, a reclaimed salmon-pink bathroom suite, and an Edwardian-esque mantel now enjoying its moment to shine after years spent patiently collecting dust in the shed. Each with a unique memory.
Sarah’s home is a tangible reflection of what she has always championed with the Unique Homestays brand: that “true luxury isn’t something you can buy; it’s something you feel.”
Coswarth manor can be hired commercially for photoshoots and filming.
Feeling inspired? Learn more about Unique Homestays’ 25-year journey, discover more owner chronicles, or peruse the full collection.
