Victorian Terrace House Renovation

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Victorian Terrace House Renovation

Victorian Terrace House Renovation

CLIENT BRIEF

Last summer I got the opportunity to take on a large project and complete an entire house! The house was stuck in the previous century and needed to be updated and made suitable for a family to live as a long term rental. Although I wouldn’t be getting to furnish this property, I would be getting the opportunity to re-design the layout, the doors, the kitchen design and bathroom, so was very excited to get the project underway!

ACTION PLAN

This March I donned my builder’s boots and helped to rip down walls once we were handed the keys. Everything had to be pulled out, and we were able to choose which heating system, radiators, kitchen and bathroom to install. Normally I am working around immovable objects but on this project I had a completely free rein.

The first thing to note is that this house is Victorian, and I just love these old characteristic properties, having owned one in London in the past. This property is a terrace in Wolverton, Britains’ first railway town and also a conservation area, meaning there is a strict code to follow when changing the facade of the property. This Victorian property is smaller and has also seen nearly every interior design cliché over the decades and stopped somewhere around the 1970s!

Despite the town keeping its Railway History, there was very little left of any architectural details to restore in this property. I wanted the property to be modern and spacious as you would get in a new build but in an old façade. We applied for planning permission and had the large unusable chimney breasts removed from the upper floor, making the rooms very spacious.

We reinstating the original layout by building a wall to create a entrance hallway. The walls were stripped and plastered, the make-shift stair wall was removed and a banister was built. We replaced the old aluminium windows by sourcing some simple Victorian Sliders whilst strictly keeping to the code that they are to look like wood, but chose modern materials to keep the property well insulated.

Hopefully the photos will show you how the interior was transformed, from removing the small lobby as you entered the property, which was knocked down and a wall built to create a entrance hall opening onto the living area. The walls were painted to hip height in a grey durable paint, ideal for the busiest part of a home. The walls were painted white throughout and the far wall a shade of grey as well as the fireplace to tie the whole space together and add interest at the same time.

Before

After

The kitchen originally had a smaller room at the back (a coal room). The wall was removed to make way for a kitchen-diner. Decades of wallpaper was removed, and the walls stripped back to the brick. We designed the kitchen / diner with plenty of storage and preparation space, making sure the drawers and cupboards were large and soft closing! We built a large utility cupboard to house noisy appliances and a cupboard to house the new combo boiler, plaster boarded and skimmed throughout, added plenty of sockets and switches, and lighting for the modern home and the chosen kitchen was installed.

Before

After

Having run several polls on our facebook page, we went with the highest percentage of the votes, installing blinds over curtains, and a walk in shower instead of a small bath. Although the overall percentage was in favour of a grey door, we did go for Black in the end, due to time constraints – it took longer to make a grey door than a black door!