I'm the queen of UPCYCLING!'

Brimming with ideas and ready for a challenge, Monika has designed a home that’s full of personality

Having bought our house in the Wirral, Merseyside, in February 2019, we knew it would need quite a bit of TLC,’ says Monika. ‘The big draw was the area as we originally lived just a few streets away, and I always liked the idea of owning one of these lovely Victorian-style houses. As soon as this house came on the market, we jumped at the chance to buy it.

It was perfect for us – just the right size, yet there was room to grow if we needed it, and we could both see it had so much potential. However, we were under no illusion that it needed some work and in my head I was already removing a few walls and upgrading some of the electrics and plumbing! As we both work full time, we knew we had to be organised, but we both love hard work so we jumped straight in.

First phase 

I wanted to have the downstairs sorted within six months, which included removing the wall between the kitchen and dining room. I love open spaces and it felt a shame to have them as separate rooms – I wanted it to feel more sociable as we often entertain family and friends. Konrad is really hands on, so he knocked the walls down himself, but we did check first that they weren’t supporting walls and it was safe to do.

We also knocked the wall down between the bathroom and toilet upstairs to create a larger family bathroom. And, once all the electrics and plastering were in place, we fitted a new kitchen. I wanted something simple so we went for a Scandinavian design, which works well – I just added interest with some brick-style wall slips, which we fitted to the remaining wall to give the idea of an open-brick finish. The ones I chose have a rustic finish and have fooled lots of people into thinking it’s a real brick wall, which is just what I wanted.