Full of cheer

Paula and Matthew Gowar rescued a Victorian house in a sorry state and slowly brought it back to life with clever, creative ideas and lots of colour and sparkle

- NATALIE FLAUM

Paula and Matthew Gowar embarked on a labor-of-love restoration when they moved into their home a decade ago. It hadn’t been touched for 40 years: ‘Every room was a 1970s throwback of patterned carpets, woodchip and flowery wallpaper. We installed central heating and moved in three days before Christmas. Caspar arrived two weeks later,’ says Paula.