Thanks to its striking colour scheme of predominantly grey and black, exposed timbers and rough plaster, this old blacksmith’s forge in rural Brittany, western France, has been transformed into a contemporary yet historically sympathetic cottage. ‘The forge played an important part in the day to day workings of a centuries old farm here that housed cows, horses and pigs, ’ says owner Marc Pillonetto. ‘We wanted to respect the building’s previous life, so we retained as much of the original fabric of the structure. But we didn’t want to create an overtly themed cottage inside, so the use of colour is a subtle reference to its working past.’