Sad reason Stacey Solomon refuses to show one area of her new house after selling £1.3 million Pickle Cottage

Stacey Solomon has opened up about the reason why she and her husband Joe Swash aren't keen on showing one specific area of their new house after selling their beloved £1.3 million Pickle Cottage.

Last week, the Loose Women star and the EastEnders actor revealed that they were packing up at Pickle Cottage in Essex after five years of living there to head to a new home which offers more land and room for their plans.

In the emotional announcement, the pair described the move as a ‘massive decision’ as Pickle Cottage is a ‘really special place for them’ - they gave birth to their daughters there, and got married in the property.

As for the reason behind the move, Stacey explained that for a while they have wanted to ‘rescue more animals and grow more vegetables’.

She said: "So we've always been thinking if there's ever a chance to move further out and get a bit more land, then we would consider it, and we saw somewhere, and I was like, 'Oh my God, we could have a massive vegetable patch, and we could offer our land to animals who need it' and stuff like that.

"And we could bring the horses back there, the ponies, and we went to see it..."

In her latest update, shared with her six million Instagram followers over the weekend, Stacey said that there is one part of the property she won't be showing fans for a particularly sad reason.

"I can't wait to properly have some days off work & show you all around... I'm not going to show the outside of the house this time around. Just for security & privacy reasons... we had some issues at Pickle Cottage in the end and it's safer to just not show the building itself," Stacey explained in one video.

"I am so excited though to take you into the rooms and get inspiration from you all."

She continued: "There's so much to think about & so many fun things to do. I will need help with this project because it's huge. I need all of your tips, tricks, ideas!

"I'm going to really take my time and live here and work out what to do with each room because I don't want to rush it!

"But I can't tell you how excited I am to sink my teeth into this project with you all."

Stacey previously shared photos and videos of the exterior of Pickle Cottage, particularly when she and Joe first moved there in 2021, as well as throughout their renovations.

Pickle Cottage was also a major feature of the couple's BBC show, Stacey & Joe. Filmed at their Essex home, it gave viewers an inside look at the family's life there.

Stacey recently gave fans an insight into the top floor of their new home, discovering a working antique projector, a children's horse-riding hat, a vintage racket, an old domino set while rummaging around.

Captioning the post, she wrote: "Here’s us exploring and finding some treasures that the last people left behind. I need your opinion. Is that orange bath suite nice? Because I love it & Can someone tell me what these dominos are made of please.

"And whether I should keep that 80s TV because it actually makes me feel so happy & nostalgic when I look at it."