Houzz Tour: A Period Home With an Inside-outside Extension
A side-return addition and internal rejig transformed this house into a bright home that feels connected to the garden
The original features had been well looked after in this double-fronted Edwardian house, but the layout needed reworking to cater to the lifestyle of a modern family. Some clever space planning and thoughtful design turned the property into an elegant yet practical home with a gorgeous view of the garden.
“The owners were keen to make the view of and access to the garden much better, as they’d been used to the vast expanses of nature and daylight in New Zealand,” Beth says.
Find a renovation specialist for your project by searching the Houzz Professionals Directory.
Find a renovation specialist for your project by searching the Houzz Professionals Directory.
The team built a huge window seat and incorporated large expanses of glass in the design. This allowed them to create a relaxed seating area, with a bench seat and chairs either side of the dining table.
“The sliding doors at the side of the kitchen [see first photo] were chosen for their minimal detailing and framing,” Beth says, “so they visually disappear and the window seat is the focus of the room.”
Dining table, Houseology. Wall light, Naomi Paul. Dining chairs, Habitat.
More: 17 Modern Oriel Windows With Wraparound Views
“The sliding doors at the side of the kitchen [see first photo] were chosen for their minimal detailing and framing,” Beth says, “so they visually disappear and the window seat is the focus of the room.”
Dining table, Houseology. Wall light, Naomi Paul. Dining chairs, Habitat.
More: 17 Modern Oriel Windows With Wraparound Views
“The owner likes to cook with the children, so they needed lots of storage for ingredients, as well as worktop space for them to make a mess on,” Beth says. The large island provides an ample surface and the composite stone worktop is practical and easy to look after.
“I always encourage clients to choose handmade tiles, as they look less clinical and the imperfections reflect light beautifully,” Beth says. “These emerald green ones were imported from Mexico, and fortunately the owner agreed we should take them full height on the wall, which created a really strong contrast with the grey units.
“We also asked the builders to add a slim wooden shelf either side of the extractor fan, which is a great place to display plants and art,” she adds.
Elegant clear glass pendant lights over the island ensure the view to the garden is unobstructed, and they’re complemented by recessed spotlights in the ceiling and in the window frame.
Green Mexican tiles, Milagros. Ovens, Miele. Extractor, Elica. Hob, Neff.
“I always encourage clients to choose handmade tiles, as they look less clinical and the imperfections reflect light beautifully,” Beth says. “These emerald green ones were imported from Mexico, and fortunately the owner agreed we should take them full height on the wall, which created a really strong contrast with the grey units.
“We also asked the builders to add a slim wooden shelf either side of the extractor fan, which is a great place to display plants and art,” she adds.
Elegant clear glass pendant lights over the island ensure the view to the garden is unobstructed, and they’re complemented by recessed spotlights in the ceiling and in the window frame.
Green Mexican tiles, Milagros. Ovens, Miele. Extractor, Elica. Hob, Neff.
I was keen to retain the lovely period feel in the dining room,” Beth says. She kept the original fireplace, cornicing and joinery, and painted the room in an elegant warm grey.
Walls painted in Ammonite, Farrow & Ball. Dining table; pendant light, both John Lewis & Partners.
Walls painted in Ammonite, Farrow & Ball. Dining table; pendant light, both John Lewis & Partners.
The dining room opens into the rear living room, which was redesigned as a playroom for the children. “It’s a lovely light room, which has the original French doors opening onto the garden at the back, so we kept the joinery simple and in keeping with the rest of the house,” Beth says.
“We were careful to restore the unusual plaster mouldings on the ceiling, and these have become the focal point of the room,” she adds.
Beth incorporated enough space for storing games, toys and books and used the same wall colour as in the dining room to keep the mood consistent.
“We were careful to restore the unusual plaster mouldings on the ceiling, and these have become the focal point of the room,” she adds.
Beth incorporated enough space for storing games, toys and books and used the same wall colour as in the dining room to keep the mood consistent.
“We were lucky that the previous owners had looked after the house so well, as the original hallway floor tiles, cornicing and stained glass front door were all still intact,” Beth says.
She made a feature of the beautiful front door by painting it and the surrounding frame in a strong grey-toned green, which works well with the red stained glass.
Door painted in Pigeon, Farrow & Ball. Console table, Ardingly Antiques.
She made a feature of the beautiful front door by painting it and the surrounding frame in a strong grey-toned green, which works well with the red stained glass.
Door painted in Pigeon, Farrow & Ball. Console table, Ardingly Antiques.
Beth made use of a previously unused external passage to build a boot room and utility area.
“We designed a simple, low-level bench with space for shoes below, and tongue-and-groove panelling for hanging coats on above,” she says.
“We designed a simple, low-level bench with space for shoes below, and tongue-and-groove panelling for hanging coats on above,” she says.
“We wanted the living room at the front of the house to have a grown-up, elegant look, but still be somewhere the family could gather together in the evenings to relax,” Beth says.
She chose deep, comfortable sofas and added a soft Moroccan rug. The calm colour scheme is lifted with red and ochre cushions.
Walls painted in Purbeck Stone, Farrow & Ball. Sofas, Sofa.com. Moroccan rug, West Elm.
She chose deep, comfortable sofas and added a soft Moroccan rug. The calm colour scheme is lifted with red and ochre cushions.
Walls painted in Purbeck Stone, Farrow & Ball. Sofas, Sofa.com. Moroccan rug, West Elm.
The team reconfigured the layout on the first floor to create a master suite that was better suited to the size of the house.
A hand-carved Indian mirror contrasts with contemporary linen curtains, while navy, ochre and olive green velvet adds a luxurious feel to the cushions and upholstery.
Walls painted in Lamp Room Gray, Farrow & Ball. Linen lamp shade, John Lewis & Partners. Sofa, Sofa.com. Curtains throughout the house, Village Blinds.
A hand-carved Indian mirror contrasts with contemporary linen curtains, while navy, ochre and olive green velvet adds a luxurious feel to the cushions and upholstery.
Walls painted in Lamp Room Gray, Farrow & Ball. Linen lamp shade, John Lewis & Partners. Sofa, Sofa.com. Curtains throughout the house, Village Blinds.
“We knocked through from the large front bedroom into a smaller rear bedroom, and created a walk-through wardrobe and generous en suite bathroom,” Beth says.
“The owners were keen to reflect their passion for travel, so we used Moroccan-style floor tiles to link the en suite and wardrobe area, and to add some contrast to the calm, grey-green walls.”
“The owners were keen to reflect their passion for travel, so we used Moroccan-style floor tiles to link the en suite and wardrobe area, and to add some contrast to the calm, grey-green walls.”
“The family bathroom was designed to be a practical space where the children could happily splash around,” Beth says. “It features a mixture of inexpensive patterned tiles on the floor and bolder, plain tiles on the wall.”
Beth also designed joinery beneath the basin with storage and panelling to hide the cistern.
Bathroom fittings, Bathstore.
Tell us…
What do you like about this beautiful Edwardian home? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Beth also designed joinery beneath the basin with storage and panelling to hide the cistern.
Bathroom fittings, Bathstore.
Tell us…
What do you like about this beautiful Edwardian home? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Who lives here? A family who had moved to the UK from New Zealand
Location South London
Property An Edwardian house
Size Five bedrooms and four bathrooms
Designer Beth Dadswell of Imperfect Interiors
Photos by Chris Snook
The owners of this Edwardian home carried out their renovation in two phases, with different builders. The first phase involved a reconfiguration of the internal walls and redecoration throughout, while the second included a side-return extension (where the run of kitchen base units is now located) and the installation of a picture window and sliding glass doors.
“It was important to have a masterplan of how the two phases would fit together,” interior designer Beth Dadswell says.
“There were two kitchens,” she continues, “but neither of them was big enough. So we spent time looking at how to open up the spaces to allow more light in, and to encourage better use of all the rooms.”
Kitchen, Puccini. Worktop, Caesarstone. Grey porcelain floor tiles, World’s End Tiles. Glass pendants, Rose & Grey. Rug, Crystal Palace Antiques. Skylight, Maxlight.