Neutral ground

Siobhan and Rory McFadden breathed new life and authentic character into a run-down Victorian terrace with a brightening pale palette and warm, natural textures that create a comfortable and lived-in feel

- HOLLY WALSH

Siobhan McFadden, a colour consultant for Farrow & Ball, lives here with her husband Rory, a civil engineer, and their daughters, Una, four and Nora, one.

THE PROPERTY

A four-bedroom, late-Victorian terrace in Edinburgh, bought in August 2017.

THE VALUE

Similar properties in the area sell for £575,000.

Siobhan and Rory McFadden took jobs in Edinburgh nine years ago, relocating there from Ireland. They found a two-bedroom flat on the west side of the city and settled in… until the arrival of their first child changed everything. ‘When Una was born in 2017, we needed more space. The only way we could afford our preferred location was to take on a property that needed a lot of work and we fell in love with this one’s quirks immediately.

‘The kitchen was the priority: with an old tin sink and virtually no cupboards or appliances, it was unusable. The dining room next door was small and both rooms were north-facing, so felt cold and dark. We knocked down the dividing wall and came up with a new layout. It was tough living on a building site with a toddler and we had to work hard to get it done, but three months in we had a beautiful, fully functioning kitchen.