'Our new build is a COLOURFEST'

Erica and James swapped city living for a new build in the country, updating their bland and beige house into a home bursting with personality

- LAURA EWART/LAURIE DAVIDSON

After years of living in a Victorian house in south-east London, it was time for us to move out of the capital and so we started looking around north Essex,’ says Erica. ‘We arranged a day to view several houses and I went to see this one under duress; it was a new build and I had never lived in a new home before. I remember driving up to it and thinking “Oh, I actually really like it!” After living in London for 20 years, I couldn’t believe the space.

The house wasn’t decorated to my taste though – it was all white and beige, and the kitchen was very dark with French doors leading into a conservatory, which was too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. We knew we’d want to turn that into a practical and functional part of the kitchen. That aside, we fell in love with the space and the surrounding fields, woods and water.

Changing rooms

The living room was the first room we tackled and we did this so we knew we would have a completed family space that we could relax in – the kitchen required a lot more work and mess, so it made sense to complete the living space first. My inspiration for the room was a 1970s boho vibe and as soon as I saw the Hendricks sofa from Habitat, I knew it would be the starting point for the scheme.