25 Beautiful Homes April 2022

If you’re looking for one rule to follow when embarking on a renovation, you could do worse than taking a leaf out of Spencer and Emma Guy’s book. ‘Keep things simple and get the bones right’ is the mantra the couple stuck to when they set out to build their striking house (p49). Also completing a major project were our Reader Awards winners, Micaela and Tom Baker, who managed to overcome the challenges of moving and building during lockdown with the most spectacular results(p71). Overcoming challenges is a common theme in this issue and we were so impressed to read how Alice and Charlie Huntingford decided to start from scratch after a devastating fire had destroyed their home – their story is amazing (p90). We hope the houses we feature…

Valeriia Voshchevska has always been a devotee of colour and pattern. While not a British national, the Ukrainian has come to adore the interior style in her adopted country. ‘I love the bold and sometimes eclectic aesthetic of British townhouses and British design in general,’ she says. Valeriia had always dreamed of owning a ‘little townhouse on a cute London street,’ and when the first lockdown hit she realised that her gardenless flat had become insufficient for her needs. ‘When I saw this Victorian property with a roof terrace on the market I didn’t hesitate,’ she explains. ‘Apart from the kitchen, the house hadn’t been touched for about 10 years so I knew I would have to redo it from the inside out, but I saw it as a great…

DESIGN ADVICE ‘A staircase that isn’t enclosed lets light flow and can be a striking architectural feature in a space’ HOW DID YOU COME TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT? The homeowners knew about our work in the area and previously had a consultation with us on an earlier potential project. They were moving back to London and I think that the local knowledge was important. HOW INVOLVED WERE THE OWNERS? The clients were very engaged and yet – importantly – didn’t feel the need to do the designing. This is the recipe for the best renovations. Most homeowners have an idea in their mind but don’t know how to express or realise it. An architect’s job is to create something that is beyond their dreams. We were very lucky…

Not every prospective homebuyer would be willing to buy a house they’d only seen via a video link, but for Kelli and David Lundberg, it was a case of trusting their instincts and taking the plunge. ‘We were living and working in San Francisco when we decided to move back to our native Australia,’ explains Kelli. ‘We felt it was time to come home – the only problem was, we weren’t entirely sure where home was. We sat down with a map and drew a circle around Melbourne. In California, David had about an hour’s commute, so we figured we could live within a similar distance of his office-to-be in Melbourne.’ Undaunted by the prospect of moving a family of four – the couple have two sons, Jack, now 20,…

If there’s one design feature that really stands out in Helena and Dan Archer’s 1950s terrace house, it’s the unexpected layout on the ground floor that is a far cry from the way it looked when the couple first viewed it. ‘Initially, the house felt very poky and dark with lots of small rooms as it hadn’t been renovated for over 30 years,’ explains Helena, who was more enamoured with the area than the actual house. ‘When Dan and I viewed it a second time, we could see that with a thoughtful layout, more suited to our way of living, we could open up the space and create a much lighter and more harmonious environment.’ Working with interior designer Lily Paulson-Ellis, owner and founder of LPE Designs, and building company…

At the start of Annette Pisani’s house-hunting journey with her partner Claire Winchester, affording a home with a sea view seemed like an impossible dream as they wanted to stay close to Brighton’s city centre. After months of looking, they were delighted to find a dated chalet bungalow along a clifftop road. ‘Nothing obscured the sea views, the outlook was amazing,’ recalls Annette. ‘It felt a bit like being in Cornwall, yet Brighton was only an eight-minute drive away.’ However, the dream almost slipped from the couple’s hands when their offer was refused. But some months later, they noticed the property still hadn’t sold and boldly knocked on the door. ‘The owners were keen and the timing turned out to be uncanny as we received an offer on our home…