How the founders of Weaver Green turned a Victorian cricket pavilion into the perfect off-grid escape
This restored cricket pavilion is the perfect escape from the demands of busy lives, finds Arabella Youens. Photographs by Simon Brown.
Inspiration for Tasha and Barney Green’s business, Weaver Green, struck when they were sitting on a wall in a Turkish port 20 years ago, watching a fisherman cut plastic bottles into a long spiral to make a rudimentary rope to tether his boat. It sparked the idea of transforming plastic bottles into soft yarn that can be hand-loomed into rugs, throws, cushions and other home accessories. Today, the couple’s handful of businesses also includes The Unnatural Flooring Company, which makes flooring that looks convincingly natural, but is made from vinyl, polyamide and polypropylene with all the performance benefits they offer.
For the past 25 years, their home has been in south Devon, near where Tasha grew up. ‘We initially bought some cottages on the edge of a beautiful old estate. Later, parts of the estate were broken off and put up for sale, including a Victorian cricket pavilion that stood a short walk through the woods at the end of our garden. We jumped at the chance to buy it.’
A storm precipitated the reconstruction of this mid-19th-century riverside building.
The single-storey wooden structure had been built in about 1850 and used as overflow accommodation for the main house. Inside was a basic kitchen and bathroom, as well as a loo and a septic tank, but no electricity. The walls were riddled with woodworm. ‘Still, we were thrilled. It really came into its own during the early days of the pandemic, when we were operating at what I can only describe as an unsustainable level of hospitality — there were 11 of us living under our roof and it felt like cooking for a dinner party every night. Barney and I would use it as an escape pod, living cheek-by-jowl with the mice and woodworm, but we didn’t mind; when you get there, it feels as if you’re somewhere else entirely with starlit skies and owls. We relished the peace and quiet.’
Another attraction was the chance to escape the constant connectivity of modern-day living; there was no television, no Wi-Fi and no mobile-phone connection because of a hill that blocks signals reaching the nearest mast.
'Much of the structure of the building — a Victorian cricket pavilion — is made from oak, ash and beech that had fallen in the storm'
Three years ago, however, a strong storm tore off the roof and brought down several trees. Left with only the frame of the building, they decided that the time was ripe for a full restoration. ‘What we didn’t want to do was anything that affected the charm of the original building. It was never a grand structure — these heavily wooded Devon valleys render formal games of cricket almost impossible in any case — but the position is magical.’
Giving a new purpose to an old building that might otherwise have been reclaimed by nature has been a source of huge pleasure for the couple. The layout is simple, with a large living room, a galley kitchen, a main bedroom, a bathroom and a bunkroom. Electricity is delivered via a nearby storage shed. The couple used wood from trees that had fallen in the storm, including oak, ash and beech. For the floor of the large porch, they used reclaimed Delabole slate laid in a herringbone pattern sourced from a local yard. Oak provided planks for a new floor and kitchen cabinetry, which is simply designed with the original butler’s sink and a stone worktop. They clad the walls and ceilings with tongue-and-groove panelling.
Barney and Tasha Green inside the restored cricket pavilion.
‘When the weather is nice, what we love to do is throw open the doors so that the division between the inside and the outside almost disappears.’ To that end, the bathroom has a tin bath by the doors, which can be pinned back on cabin hooks, and the main bedroom has a built-up bed so you can lie with tea and toast, take in the views or listen to the nearby river. Weaver Green products, including indoor/outdoor kilims and rugs, which can be thrown in a washing machine, are much in evidence.
‘I realise we are extremely fortunate to have this space and it’s not an option for everyone, but I love having somewhere that we can escape everything and everyone and just switch off,’ says Tasha. ‘It’s also where I find lots of inspiration for new designs that I think would be useful to have in the pavilion.’ One such initiative, which took five years to come to fruition, is the Babylon collection of cushions made of recycled plastic yarn that looks and feels like natural linen. These can be left on the garden furniture if it rains, avoiding the need for mad dashes outside in the wet.
During the day, the Greens like to fish in the nearby river. ‘I see fishing as a sort of aquatic tai chi,’ says Tasha. ‘Your brain empties and there’s very little to do except take in the wildlife and the surroundings. It’s the perfect respite to everyday life, where we are surrounded by incessant noise and in constant communication. Being able to switch off and go off grid is the greatest gift ever.’
This feature originally appeared in the April 8, 2026, issue of Country Life. Click here for more information on how to subscribe.
