THE BRIEF
This project is an extended Victorian property in the middle of a beautiful Yorkshire village. It has five bedrooms, three reception rooms and a conservatory. Though the traditional exterior remained intact, a prior owner had removed almost all of the period features inside. Some details had been retrofitted but these additions did not match the period of the property and so everything felt a little uncomfortable and out of place. The family, who are originally from the village wanted a complete redesign of the space bringing this historically confused home into the 21st century.
The family includes three teenagers, two of whom have additional needs, including autism. This design brief was created putting those needs of each individual at the forefront, to ensure the family felt calm and at peace in the space, whilst also letting their personalities shine. The whole project needed to be collaborative process in which to make a house feel like home.
HOW WE ACHIEVED THE BRIEF
This Victorian home was fully refurbished to marry its period features with the demands of 21st century life. As well as creating a beautiful home, which is easy to live in for this family, the goal was to allow flexibility so they can host their large extended family for regular gatherings. As part of the briefing process, we studied the loves and hates of everyone, as well as the family’s ergonomics and started to build a picture of how they would use and move around the home. We considered details such as seating and circulation space so the home could accommodate the all-important family gatherings with ease.
By laying out the rooms to create a sociable central hub in the sitting room, we ensured that the family could gather, while affording them and their children the ability to relax in calmer, more soothing spaces such as the snug and library which were deemed necessary from our initial consultations. We utilised unique furniture solutions throughout the home, such as banquette kitchen seating and an ottoman providing extra seating in the sitting room.
When it came to the soft furnishings, performance was as central as the aesthetics, to ensure that the home could stand the test of time. We worked closely with trusted local suppliers to select pieces that could withstand the demands of a busy family life but still felt fun and playful. Texture and tactile pieces were key. For example, luxurious curtains offer a cocooning feeling in the bedrooms while in the snug, a durable, heavy blanket helps the teenagers to kick back and relax while watching the screen and sinking into a sunshine yellow sofa.
The heart line that ran through the project was a love of rich colours and so throughout the property, we used colour to materially impact each space. Allowing each room to sit at different points on a colour palette spectrum but with a continuous anchor colour allowing the home to feel impactful but extremely cohesive
We opted to drench the north-facing library in inky blues, amber, dark wood, and flecks of gold, while keeping the brighter sitting room with a blue anchor colour for the skirtings, door casings and shelves. This was complimented with a neutral carpet and off-white walls. In the kitchen we conserved the sophisticated navy blue but chose to team the cabinets with rich forest green and worked with local upholsterers to create statement seating areas and bar stools with beautifully contrasting patterned fabrics.
For the conservatory we chose opposing hues in the colour wheel, a berry pink and olive green. This permits the space to feel bright and transformative even on a dull, rainy day. On this project we linked up with beautiful lighting designers, Pooky which supplied several of the wonderful shades and lamp fittings. Not only do the patterns chosen add balance and harmony but the rechargeable lamps mean they can be placed anywhere the client wishes without wires being on show.
The bedrooms provided an opportunity to give the client’s children free reign and follow their passions and so these rooms were designed to offer a bespoke sensory experience.
The client’s daughter was very prescriptive with how she wanted her room and requested a distinct colour for each wall. A fan of children’s cartoon ‘Little Twin Stars,’ we interpreted the cartoon’s calming pastel tones into a scheme, made allowances for a makeup station and a place to enjoy art while also having a captain’s bed made especially for her. We commissioned a mural artist to add further personalisation.
The guest bedroom was originally a grey box, it needed some injection of colour and personality to become a beautiful, yet cosy place to relax. We created a new focal point by positioning the bed opposite re-vamped fitted wardrobes which encourages guests to take in the view from the window. We also worked with our trusted supplier to create a wonderful, oversized headboard in an abstract and contemporary design and palette of soothing blues and punchy coral.
As part of the project, we installed new triple glazed windows throughout, to dramatically improve the properties EPC rating and ensure the home was cooler in summer and warmer in winter. All services were specified so they could be managed remotely, instilling confidence for our client in the clients that the home was secure when they were elsewhere. These installations included a remotely controlled heating system, which guaranteed that it is always warm and welcoming for their arrival.
THE RESULTS
The house has been transformed into a haven of colour, elegance, and calm. It has made a house a home and we have loved turning our client’s dream into a reality. You can view more images of this particular project on our portfolio page.