Hidden in the Landes, a listed residence that has become a chic and warm refuge

The new chic for holidays? Taking up your summer quarters in a charming guesthouse. With only a few rooms (five at most), often nestled in bucolic locations, furnished and decorated with care by hosts who have put their heart and soul into it, they are the guarantee of serene, unique, unforgettable stays. They can also become sources of inspiration in terms of interior design. An overview of our favorite addresses with a fourth stopover at La Maison de Magescq in the Landes and a meeting with its owner Anaïs Fillau.

The Maison de Magescq in the Landes, a stately home restored to the highest standards, exuding a warm, contemporary spirit.

The history of the place

“My husband and I lived in Singapore for over ten years. Knowing we were going to return to France, we started looking at houses in Landes. We loved this region which corresponded to several important criteria for us: proximity to the ocean and accessibility from Paris by train. Our project was to bring a beautiful building back to life. We loved living in Asia but we missed this heritage aspect, a family home. We knew that properties were rare in the region and when we came across the advert, while we were still in Singapore, I didn’t hesitate for a second and sent my mother to visit the place. She told us right away that the place was for us. My father-in-law, who is the project manager, also went there and also gave the go-ahead. We also ordered a “video tour”. And we bought the house in April 2022 without ever having entered it! We trusted our parents but, let’s admit it, we were a little apprehensive when we actually got to know him in June 2022.

However, she was even more beautiful than we had imagined! It must be said that she has a lot of character. It is difficult to know when it was built: some say that the Napoleonic registers testify to its presence in 1700, others think that it would have been completed in the 1900s. What is certain is that it has all the attributes of a prestigious residence. The estate was called Le Tuc, which designates the raised houses that can be seen from the road, an attribute of wealthy people. It also has a small turret, which is why the people of the village call it The Castle even though it is only a mansion. The interior has all the characteristics of a bourgeois interior: high ceilings, cement tiles, fireplaces… We were very spoiled! And what’s more, the house was healthy even though it had been unoccupied for thirty years. Initially, we had not considered making guest rooms… But when we looked into the restructuring of these 550 m², we said to ourselves that it was worth launching into hospitality, to share this magnificent house with others. This idea also corresponded with my background: I worked in the hotel and events industry for a long time and I had just created my decoration brand. We embarked on this unexpected adventure! »

The works

“The structure is listed and we therefore had constraints to respect. But that suited us very well because we have a love for the old. We made sure to preserve what could be preserved. We concentrated a lot of the work on the second level where the guest rooms are located and on the rooftop also intended for our customers.

We have kept all the fireplaces even if some do not work. There were very beautiful woods, floors – discovered under tiles – marbles and moldings which we just had restored. This work required 17 trades because we involved expert craftsmen for each of the renovations.

We made sure to modernize this place, to make it comfortable, respectful of the environment – ​​the energy class of the house is B, a challenge in such volumes – while preserving the essence of the past. We did not ask for an architect, just a project manager for the technical part. The construction site lasted a year and a half and we were able to welcome our first visitors in May 2024.

Decorative choices

“We have eclectic tastes. The mix of styles and influences is close to my heart. When I launched my brand Manifeste in 2022, I wanted to highlight natural stone, to enhance it through limited edition objects. We find this spirit in the house with lots of natural and raw materials, stone of course, wood, ceramic, polished concrete… They give the impression that there is no boundary between the outside and the inside.

The colors are also a tribute to nature, they are those that we see through the window of sandy beiges, greens… In a guest house, bedding and bed linen are essential. We worked with MPC, a reference in hotel bedding and the linen is made of Egyptian cotton. Textiles also have an important place: lots of linen, velvet, cotton, loops for the sofas. This brings warmth, softness, and fluffiness. The furniture and objects are quite organic.

Since I design a lot of things for my brand, I started for the house. I imagined the sofas, the dining room tables, the chairs, consoles for the bedrooms. So there is a lot of custom-made furniture. We also have many totems and wooden columns. Incense always burns in the entrance to awaken the senses. The whole thing invites you to slow down, think, meditate. Maybe we brought back this very Asian meditative spirit in our suitcases.

Favorite brands, objects, furniture

“There are pieces from my brand Manifeste, of course. But also Tikamoon furniture for outdoors. I really like fetish objects, so there are quite a few totems in the house. And everywhere, there are books, in every room, in every bedroom. For me, being able to open a book when you feel good and immerse yourself in reading is irreplaceable.”

Treasures to be found

“I love hunting for demijohns, African masks and statues and lots of vases.”

Decorating tips

“I think that when it comes to decoration, if you trust your emotions, your world, you rarely make mistakes because you have a backbone that allows you to decline everything around it. To give relief to your interior, you have to think about playing, even extravagantly, with heights, low furniture, taller columns, and to create a dialogue between horizontality and verticality. This brings rhythm.”

Maison de Magescq, 341 avenue de l’Océan, 40140 Magescq. Contact and reservations: maisondemagescq.com .