Finding paradise in rural Ibiza
How an Ibiza love affair led one couple to the finca restoration of a lifetime.
When Georgina Scarbrough and Will Penn met in Ibiza in 1998, they could never have imagined that chance encounter in a hotel would turn into a love affair with the island that’s lasted a quarter of a century. Relocating to Ibiza permanently in 2007, the then-fashion editor and executive producer went on to build Can Tumasi, a modernist lair in the south’s ‘Golden Triangle’ between Cala Jondal and Es Cubells that they sold to a Dutch superstar DJ in 2019. During their time at Can Tumasi, the pair set up 365 Productions, a photographic and film production agency whose clients include Stella McCartney, Gucci and The White Company. Having visited the island’s most spectacular homes through their work, the couple knew that their forever home would be a traditional finca in the north of the island.
When real estate agent Matt Crowther took them to see 400-year-old La Viña Vieja, in the Morna Valley, the couple fell instantly in love.
The house had been owned by a German family for 50 years and it took six months of negotiating to agree a sale. ‘The finca is so old and beautiful that we could sense its history on the first visit,’ explains George, over coffee in her cobbled courtyard. ‘It has the six arches which are particularly typical of San Carlos, along with original sabina ceilings and centuries-old stone flags on the floor. The open-sided upper gallery has far-reaching views across orange groves to San Carlos and to the sea.’
Outside, the property is pure casa payesa with a whitewashed bread oven, curved walls and a terraced courtyard clad with bougainvillea and vines (the house’s original name, La Viña Vieja, means ‘the old vineyard’.) Inside, the home has been sensitively updated by the couple, restoring the classic interiors to include three new bathrooms, a sleek new kitchen and a pool terrace where the couple’s six-year-old son, Luca, chatters with the wild peacock who visits the house daily. ‘We wanted to keep it as traditional as we could, so we tried not to change too much,’ says George. ‘We worked with local Ibicenco builders who were like archaeologists – they kept uncovering old bits of hidden woodwork and little alcoves that had been covered up, so we restored them and made features of them.’
George’s fashion background has merged seamlessly with interiors styling over her long career, and her keen eye is in play everywhere in the finca. ‘I sourced furniture from all over island, with lots of second-hand pieces from the San Jordi flea market and Ibiza Troc, as well as vast linen sofas from Absolut Home and Gervasoni,’ she tells me, adding ‘It’s easy to overdecorate in these big old houses, but my style is low-key and pared back, using pieces a that are quietly beautiful, not shouty. The house’s original features and proportions are perfection itself, so to detract from that would feel like a mistake.’
La Viña Vieja sleeps 10 and is available to rent through 365 Productions.
