REAL HOME
ceiling and staircase were made of
dreary brown timber.’ There were also
some tweaks to make such as removing
weather-proof strips from the French
windows so they wouldn’t jam.
After the structural work was finished,
they were left with a white box to furnish.
But, thanks to their artistic background,
the house now pops with colour.
Ben and Lucy have recently decided
to work together, forming M & P Arts,
and have created a tiny art gallery in a
former spare garage. The couple removed a
kitchenette and filled in the doorway that
linked this garage to the adjoining one. ‘We
also blocked up two unwanted windows
to create more wall space,’ she says, ‘and
converted the original up-and-over garage
doors into standard opening double doors.’Out in the huge walled garden they
found that shrubs planted 40 years ago had
become overgrown and an enormous tree
blocked the light. ‘We’ve removed the tree
and a whole line of shrubs,’ says Lucy. ‘The
problem was we would remove one then
find something else to be dealt with.’
Apart from the garden project the house
is almost complete, but the journey hasn’t
been completely hitch-free. ‘About a month
after we moved in a pipe burst and water
poured down the kitchen light fittings. I
was alone at the time and didn’t even know
where the stopcock was but the firemen
were brilliant – they turned everything off
and checked the electrics,’ says Lucy.
Fortunately, you would never know, and
the kitchen, along with the rest of their
house is now a perfect family home.78 June 2019 http://www.yourhomemagazine.co.uk
For the walls the couple chose Hague
Blue by Farrow & Ball. The basin is from
UK Bathroom Warehouse and the vanity
unit from Tikamoon‘The wardrobes are original to the house but
we added leather door handles bought years ago
from a boat outfitters.’
The stripy throw is from John Lewis
and echoes the colours in the painting
above the bed. The clever ‘floating’
design of the wardrobes helps create
an illusion of space, drawing the eye
above and below the doors.