originalfeatures.Forexample,theniceoldstairbanister
wasstillthere,wejusthadtoaddtheturnedspindles
underneath,whicha carpentermadeforus.’
Havingreturnedthehousebacktoitsoriginallayout
andupdatedthebathroom,SiobhanandJimdidmostof
thedecoratingthemselves.‘WesoldourhouseinLondon
forthesamepriceweboughtthisonefor,sowedidn’t
havea potofmoneytospend,’saysSiobhan.
Theywaitedsixmonthsbeforetacklingthekitchen.
Demolishingtheoldkitchen,a downstairsbathroomand
studyarea,theycreatedonebigkitchen-diningspaceand
addeda baywindowwheretherehadoncebeenanoutside
toilet.Siobhanhada lotofinputintothedesignofher
Shaker-stylekitchen.‘Wespenta lotonthisarea,
knowingit wouldbeourmainroom.Wealsohadtohave
thefoundationsstrengthenedtosupportthenewwindow.’
Whenit cametostyling,therewasdefinitelya retro
theme.‘Jimreallylikesshabbychic,vintagethingsand
IloveSixtiesandSeventiespieces,sothere’sa bitof
everythingwe’vecollectedovertheyears.We’venever
spenta lotonfurniture,butwedohavesomereallygood
vintagelights,’shesays.‘I alwaysthinkaninteresting
lampwillstandouta lotmorethana fancysofa.’
Withthehousenowreturnedtoitsoldself,allthat’s
lefttodois enjoyit.‘Previously,we’ddoupa houseand
moveon– andI’mnotsureweevengotaroundtoputting
picturesupinourlastone,’saysSiobhan.‘Butthisplaceis
thelongestwe’velivedanywhereandit reallydoesfeel
homely, as though we’ve finally put down roots.’
bathROOM
there’sa subtlenautical
themeinhere,withship
printsandportholemirrors.
Cambridgeroll-topbath,
£449,Bathstore.Dunelm’s
Porthole mirror, £25, is similar
hOMeOffice
Glassdecanters
pickedupata
car-bootsaleadd
boldcolourtothis
cornerofthestudy.
TheHemnesglass
doorcabinet,£195,
Ikea,isa match
dininGaRea
‘Wefoundthe
kitchentableat
auctionandit’sone
oftheonlythingswe
werebraveenoughto
spendpropermoney
on,’saysSiobhan.
Finda similarvintage
tableatLovejoys
Antiques in Brighton
favourite room
‘I spentagesplanningthekitchen
andit’sexactlyhowI hadpicturedit.
It’s a lovely, light-filled room’
period semi | 25bh
25bhjunE 2019| 103