This terraced house in north west London – Queen’s Park / Kilburn area, did not have any work done for two generations. We had to cope with crumbling plaster and uneven internal walls.
We carried put a complete refurbishment, including the external facade of the building and the garden. The space has been maximised thanks to changing the configuration of some of the rooms and by adding an extension. The loft has also been converted and a rear dormer installed. This added a brand new living level.
Planning application with the London Borough of Brent
Following a successful planning application, we added a side extension. This enlarged garden facing area contains now a spacious and airy dining- kitchen room. Crittal door and panels have been installed to add a modern feel to this classic London property. Roof lights above the dining area introduce more light.
We had to dug into the ground a little bit to add some essential space needed to install underfloor heating. During the works on the extension, we also put in a built-in sound system for a seamless finish.
The kitchen is made up of a single row of units, including some tall, pantry style cabinets, and a central island. The cabinets have a Farrow & Ball dark blue finish and a Carrara marble worktop.
Redesign of the reception rooms
On the ground floor, the house still had a traditional layout of rooms with two separate reception rooms – one at the front of the property and one at the back. We removed the dividing wall and connected these two spaces. The front part remained as a living room, whereas the second part has been transformed into a play room for children.
The focal point in the living room is the fireplace. We installed a classic Chesney wood burner within a beautiful, marble fireplace surround. Inside the wall recesses on both sides, there is now plenty of storage space with book shelves and a cupboard on the bottom.
The play room has some low height toy storage and a children’s table. The fireplace space has been cleaned and refurbished to add a decorative element to the room.
The floor on the whole ground level has been replaced with reclaimed wood floor boards in a herringbone pattern. Floor standing radiators of a classic shape have been installed in this section of the house.
Master bedroom and children’s rooms
The first floor features now two single, good sized bedrooms, a family bathroom and a large master bedroom.
The master bedroom benefits from plenty of natural light thanks to a tall bay window. Built-in storage has been created to complement the owners’ antique furniture. The floor is covered with natural carpet in a beige colour.
The children’s bedrooms are of similar size. Both of them have original wooden flooring, which has been sanded down and painted white. The bigger room of the two has a feature wall with green pattern wallpaper, whereas the second nursery has neutral grey colours.
This family level of the house has one medium-sized bathroom containing both a bath and a shower. Traditional style taps and sanitary-ware have been paired with more modern, geometric floor tiles.
Loft conversion
We created a new living level by converting the loft space. For this, we obtained a planning permission for a full width rear dormer, which provided additional height. The new floor now houses a large guest suite with a shower room.
The tricky spaces under the eaves have been turned into bespoke storage. A new wooden staircase has been built to give access to the top level. Originally, we planned to build a very similarly looking staircase to the one below but during construction, we opted out for a timber one.
Preserving the classical look
Throughout the house, several original features have been preserved. This included a missing piece in the front reception room cornice, which according to the previous owners fell down during the Blitz attack during the WW2 and has never been put back.
All windows were replaced with double glazed sash windows. We had installed traditional, hand-painted white, wooden windows shutters on the inside.
On the outside, the pre-existing pebble dash front façade was taken back to the brick, restored and painted. These works helped to restore the character of this property. It was not an easy task, because for the pebble dash to stick to the facade, the previous contractor had to damage the bricks on the front to make them grip to the pebble dash. Once we have removed that layer, we decided that the now exposed bricks could not be restored fully and our contractors had to painstakingly redo their shape by hand.
A city garden
The regeneration works continued throughout the outside space. The style of the rear garden is a mix between a low maintenance city garden and some planted areas. The majority of the surface has been tiled with large stone tiles, however plant beds have also been created to include some natural greenery.
