'The space now WORKS FOR US'

Isobel and Jeremy set their sights on an ambitious project, transforming an old rundown Victorian terrace into a bright, vibrant, light-filled family home

- MARISHA TAYLOR

Finding a renovation project in our local area of south-east London was the most important factor for us in our search for a new family home,’ says Isobel. ‘We were living in a three-bed flat in a Victorian mansion block at the time, but we were ready for a new challenge and were keen to buy a bigger property with a garden that we could do up in our own style, rather than buy somewhere at an inflated cost, that had already been updated.

We wanted to find somewhere in the same area as we love this little pocket of London where we live – it has lots of green spaces and parks, a lovely high street, and good connections to the city. However, finding a property we felt a connection with proved a little tricky. We viewed many houses over a six-month period, but nothing captured our imagination until we finally stumbled across this five-bed Victorian terrace, on a quiet road just off the high street.

Instant attraction

We knew immediately this house was an amazing find. It had been a treasured family home for 40 years, and although most of the original Victorian features had been removed and the downstairs rooms felt dark and disconnected, the proportions were great, there was a good-sized garden, and plenty of scope for modernisation. We jumped at the opportunity and after moving in, we spent the next six months waiting for our plans to be approved.

Inside-out living

Living in a house before you renovate gives you a really good idea of how you want it to work for you. We decided the best way to create space was to open up the layout downstairs by adding a side return and knocking through the small L-shaped kitchen, reception room and adjacent dining room to create one, large light-filled space.