Remodelling the Bungalow

LEFT: Estate agent’s photograph, June 2007. Shrouded in vegetation — front, side and back, we couldn’t even appreciate the size of the plot at the time as much of it was inaccessible. RIGHT: Re-loved, remodelled and landscaped.

We knew, before we even set foot inside on our first viewing, that this was the property for us… And not only that, it was the worst house on the best street and we wasted no time in making our offer! LEFT: Viewing the property with the estate agent back in June 2007.

LEFT: The entrance hallway, mid-renovation, after having removed the low, suspended ceiling to add height and reveal the vaulting. RIGHT: The entrance hallway, afterwards, with custom-made hardwood front door and side-light, now flooded with light from the skylight overhead.

LEFT: Living space and breakfast bar area after starting to knock through into the kitchen. RIGHT: Creating the aperture between the kitchen and living space transformed this area into a light, bright place to socialise, maximising daylight & views front-to-back.

The living space, present day, with double doors opening out onto the side garden. A lintel was already in place from a high-level window which had been blocked in by a previous owner so they could erect a greenhouse against that wall.

We included a high-level triangular window to let in more light — and to see the loggia roof soar outwards as a continuation of the ceiling.

The parquet floor is a feature in itself, and to see it restored to its original splendour was one of the most exciting & gratifying parts of the renovation.

LEFT: The kitchen, first viewing, June 2007 — small and dark with one tiny window, and leading out to a garden/store room. RIGHT: Now opened up to the living space, with a large skylight above and leading through to the new kitchen store & utility. We reclaimed unwanted parquet floor from another property and painstakingly laid it throughout the kitchen, kitchen store and inner hallway, piece by piece, to blend seamlessly with, and to extend that in the living space and entrance hall.

We removed the carpet from the inner hallway and laid our reclaimed parquet blocks piece by piece to extend this lovely flooring through to the back of the house.

The kitchen store was made firm & secure with a new ceiling and skylight, and glazed wall with access out to the garden. Cupboarding and a bespoke larder unit was installed as a continuation of the kitchen, with the utility cupboard tucked away at the end to house the boiler and washing machine.

Originally a separate bathroom and W.C., the two had been knocked through by a previous owner. We stripped the bathroom back to bare walls, borrowed space from the hallway to create a walk-in shower and had the stack pipe capped to allow the outer wall to run flat. We included 2 feature walls — one mirrored to make the bathroom feel twice its size, and one clad in beautiful American walnut. A skylight was also added to let the daylight flood in.

As with all the rooms, the textured ceilings were made flat and walls stripped and painted white. Neutral, wool carpeting was laid through bedrooms 1, 2 & 3. A tall window was also inserted into bedroom 1 to give views out to the side garden, and to reflect the outside in the full height mirrored wall in the hallway. Integral bespoke wardrobing was also included in this room.

The original garage had been converted by a previous owner into accommodation, with a new garage built on to its side. We insulated the room, smoothed the ceiling, sanded & varnished the floor and reconfigured its adjoining cloakroom. It’s a great space for a studio but would also make a lovely bedroom 4 with en-suite, or additional reception room.

The garden/store room was made solid & robust and a lovely glazed wall now opens out onto a herb deck.

The original flags were lifted and used to make the pathway to the front door, the pathway around this garden and the patio area under the new pergola. The space was then turfed to give a private rear garden.

We designed the pergola to wrap around the garage, offering a dining area to catch the evening sunshine — complete with a brick bar-b-que. We also included a handy log store and recycling area to keep everything tidy.

This was impenetrable! Overgrown, with a dilapidated greenhouse along with the back of a juggernaut in which the vendor kept her professional racing car — all hidden behind a wall of Leylandi. Given the odd shape of the plot, we left the garden landscaping to the end, taking much time to plan, sketch, and resketch ideas to make the most of the property’s grounds. We designed this side garden to be an irregular shape of different zones of decking, planting and lawn. We designed the fencing arrangement too with partially overlapping panels to allow the light & breeze through whilst retaining privacy, with the line of the fencing running at an angle so as to give uninterrupted views of the frontage from indoors. The pergola carries a top rail at soffit level, matching that of the carport, together extending the sleek lines of the property to the far reaches of the plot.

A real ‘room outside’ has been created in one of the most previously neglected parts of the plot.

The fencing, carport, pergola and formalised shingled driveway have really sharpened up another derelict part of the plot, making full use edge-to-edge, corner-to-corner and creating hidden space for bins and composter.