MIXED BLESSING This west London terrace is reaping the benefits of a blend of different styles
By blending patterns with plain walls and Scandi style with industrial chic, Tina Ramsbottom has created a winning combination
After a long time spent looking for a house in southeast London, Tina Ramsbottom and Neal Williams had almost given up when they saw a largerthan-average corner plot in their desired area. ‘As we have a child, Hudson, now 6, we loved the fact that the neighbourhood was very family orientated, and the streets wide and leafy,’ says Tina. ‘Also, the large outside space meant there would be room to extend. But unfortunately, the house was already under offer.’
Disappointed, the couple decided to widen their house hunting to Norwich, Tina’s hometown. ‘We were on the motorway to Norfolk when we received a call to say the property was back on the market,’ she says. ‘ We put in an offer straight away.’
Though the house had good proportions, the decor was decades out of date. ‘The hall was awash with honey-coloured pine, the wallpaper was orange and yellow, and each room had a chintzy chandelier,’ explains Tina.
The couple planned to build an extension at some point, but in the meantime, they ripped up the carpets, replacing them with oak floorboards, and painted all the walls white to create the Scandi look they have long admired.
Three years later, Tina and Neal finally felt ready to tackle the
extension. ‘The kitchen was tiny, so we used the side return to give us much-needed extra space,’ says Tina. ‘ We could have gone bigger, by extending to the rear, but I didn’t want to lose any of the garden. We chose less expensive wall units and plain metro tiles, so that we could splash out on high-quality items such as the granite worktops.’
As the all-white kitchen took shape, elsewhere, Tina introduced inky colours to many of the rooms. ‘I could feel a pull between my love of Nordic style, with its pale tones, and this new attraction for much darker shades,’ she says.
An artist-illustrator (using the name Summer Thornton), Tina was able to achieve a balance between these two styles by using her skills with colour. The spaces flow together with ease, and the light and dark hues provide a striking backdrop to the pops of colour and brass accents. Walk into any of the rooms and you’re sure to find one of her exquisite watercolours hanging on a wall.
Geometrics and patterns – from the vibrant jungle wallpaper in the bathroom to the Berber rug in the master bedroom – tie the look together. ‘I think I’ve found my winning scheme,’ says Tina. ‘It’s been fantastic to try and push the envelope a little.’