25 Beautiful Homes – July 2019

victorian terrace | 25bh

A

fter 10 yearsoflivingintheir
spaciousVictorianterraced
houseinsouthwestLondon,
ArabellaandBenWray
decidedit wastimefora change.However,
movinghousewasthelastthingontheir
minds.‘Wealwayslovedthehouseandhad
originallyfalleninlovewiththeopen-plan
layout,’saysArabella.‘Thepreviousowners
hadalreadyextendedoutatthebackand
openedupthegroundfloor,andthehouse
hadsucha lovelyfeelaboutit.’Initiallythe
layoutsuitedthefamily’slifestyle.‘Wespent
mostofourtimeinthecommunalground-
floorspaceandit wasperfectforkeeping
aneyeonourthreeyoungchildren,Oscar,
PoppyandGrace,’saysArabella.

Change ofplans

Fast-forwarda decadeorso,andthefamily’s
requirementswerechangingasthechildren
approachedtheteenageyears.Other
familiesmighthaveconsideredmoving,but
ArabellaandBenweren’tkeenontheidea.
‘Westilladoredthehouseanditslocation,
somovingwasneverreallyanoption,’says
Arabella.‘Butourchildrenwereolderand
neededmoreprivacy,andBenandI also
wanted a grown-up space to call our own,

soratherthanmovinghouse,wesimply

decidedtochangetheopen-planlayout.’

ArabellaandBenextendeddownwards

byexcavatingthebasement,providinga den

forthechildren.Sincethiswassucha major

renovation,theyenlistedthehelpof

Arabella’ssister-in-law,interiordesigner

TorVivian,tomanagetheprojectand

provideinputonrevisioningtheinterior.

‘WelovedTor’sworkandshehada unique

insightintoourfamily,’saysArabella.

TheWraysmovedoutforalmosta year

whilethehousewasstrippedbacktoits

bonesandrebuilt.Theprocessofcreating

separatelivingspacesbeganwithboxingoff

thegroundfloor.ThisprovidedArabella

andBenwithanareaforentertaining,as

wellasa cosysnugwheretheycouldcurlup

andwatcha film.Meanwhile,thefirstfloor

wasrestructuredintothreeseparate

bedroomsforthechildren,whilethetop

floorwastransformedintoa suiteforthe

couple.‘It’sa prettycompactspace,butwe

managedtofita smallkitchenette,anoffice,

anda dressingroomwithupholstered

cabinetrytocreatetheluxuriouscocooning

feelthatI wanted,’saysArabella.

Downstairs,TorhelpedArabellafine-

tune her vision for the kitchen, which is

usedforpreparingfamilymealsaswell

astestingrecipesforthebarandcaféat

ArabellaandBen’sChel-Skibusiness.

‘It’snota hugespace,butTormanaged

tosqueezeinfourovensanda Barazzahob,

whichI useformywork,’says Arabella.

afreshstart

Withthebuildingworkcomplete,it was

timetoredesigntheinterior.‘Wewanted

a relaxed,versatilefamilyhomewithroom

togrow– literallyandmetaphorically,’says

Arabella.WorkingcloselywithTor,she

optedfora fairlycontemporarylookwith

someindustrialtouches,suchasthedining

tableandchairs.Decor-wise,Arabellachose

aneutralpaletteofsoftgreysandwhites.

‘Itfeltsophisticatedandhadthetimeless,

classiclookI envisioned,’sheadds.Fun

details,suchastheflamingowallpaperin

Poppy’sbathroom,andbrightpopsofcolour

dottedthroughoutthepropertyadd zest

andpersonalitytothescheme.

Itis fairtosaythatallthefamilylove

theirnewlookandaremakingthemostof

thereworkedspace.‘Weallhaveourplaces

toretreattoaswewish,butwestillhaveour

socialareas,suchasthekitchen-diner,’ says

Arabella. ‘It’s the perfect balance.’

SITTINGROOM

Metallictouchesmixwitha neutralstonepaletteandsplashes

ofblueandgreentocreatea calmyetcontemporaryscheme.

Izzyloveseat,£940,Sofa.com.LoveseatreupholsteredinKitKemp

Ozonefabric,£165m,MisterSmithInteriors.Manhattancoffeetable,

£690, Neptune, is comparable. Bespoke cabinetry, LB Construct

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