A grand old dame of a home has been updated with bold colour and wallpaper.

A confidently contemporary update has given new life to a grande old dame of a home, injecting bold flashes of colour, eclectic wallpaper, architectural salvage elements and stimulating artworks.

“WHAT WOULD I DO IF THAT PLACE WERE MINE?”

“I NATURALLY GRAVITATE TO ITEMS WITH HISTORY, AS THEY WERE JUST BETTER MADE BACK IN THE DAY.”

Have you ever driven repeatedly past an old house in your neighbourhood that you find deeply interesting, making a point of looking at it carefully each time, and thinking, ‘I wonder who lives there?’ and ‘What would I do if that place were mine?’ Perhaps we all have – although very few among us will have actually pushed ahead and persuaded the property’s owner to part with it, then undertaken a major renovation.

But that’s precisely what interior designer Charlotte Collins has managed to accomplish. Having become fascinated with this beautiful old heritage home, Collins says, she finally persuaded its owner to part with it several years ago.

“The house looked as if it had been abandoned or there were squatters living there,” she says, but adds that she “could see the potential of the house despite the state of it”. When she began her renovations, she says, “I tried to make everything look like it was original to the house.”

Sadly, much of the interior was in a terrible state. Collins, with her teenage daughter, Willow, and their four large rescue dogs, moved into the quickly renovated ‘pool house’ – now a charming guest suite – and lived there as the renovation went on in the main building. “I basically gutted the entire house,” says Collins. The flow of the spaces needed to be updated and modernised, and some of the original wooden flooring had to be completely replaced, too. And then there was the bathroom, which reminded her of “the one from that scene in the film Trainspotting”. It, too, had to be completely renovated, with all the fittings needing to be replaced. From the start, Collins – who, before going into interior design, worked as a stylist on photographic and film shoots – knew precisely what she was after in terms of the look and feel of every room in her home. Plus, her experience of being “perpetually out there looking for stuff for shoots” meant that she already had a well-populated ‘black book’ of resources when it came to finding just the right fixtures and furnishings for each space. The majority of these items are pre-loved pieces, including architectural salvage elements. “I naturally gravitate to items with history, as they were just better made back in the day, and I love thinking about who had them before,” Collins says.

Most of the vintage light fittings were found in a little antique shop “that sadly no longer exists” deep in the suburbs. She also collects vintage telephones, which line the stairwell and were carefully collected week by

HOME HERITAGE UPDATE

CHARLOTTE COLLINS

week. “That said, I do use the odd modern piece,” Collins adds, pointing out the witty artwork in the hallway – a sculpture by Johannesburg-based salvage artist Philippe Bousquet. “She is called The Perfect Housewife and is made from old car parts,” says Collins, with a smile.

Similarly, rather like a sculpture made from salvage, the sleek green velvet sectional sofa in the new TV room is a very modern item – just clad in a vintage ‘dress’. Overall, it’s the thoughtful juxtaposition of old and new elements in the interiors that makes this home feel so fresh and contemporary.

Collins’ fearless approach to colour and pattern can be seen throughout the house, which includes several living spaces on the ground floor. Besides the newly updated, very glam TV room there is a library and study, and a delightful open-plan kitchen, dining and casual lounge area, which leads directly out onto the leafy garden. On the first floor above are three spacious bedrooms and one bathroom – “which is just fine as there are only two of us”, says Collins. With its blend of heritage atmosphere and airy, contemporary interior cool, this home is a charming reflection of its owner’s multifaceted life and style.

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Curved furniture has been around for decades, but new designs are providing a contemporary edge. From coffee tables to sofas, curved furniture offers a visually striking contrast.

At the rear of the ground floor of the house is the open-plan kitchen, dining space and casual sitting area. The glass and wood exterior doors are salvaged and reconditioned.

Opposite page, clockwise from top left: The floor tiles are imported from Vietnam; The cooker is by Italian manufacturers Bertazzoni, and sculpture The Perfect Housewife stands in the entrance; The formal living room features midcentury modern furniture. This page: The dining table is an old wooden, marbletopped piece covered with a layer of glass to protect the marble from stains. The two vintage benches were found at second-hand stores.

Clockwise from top left: The TV room includes an illuminated vintage ‘Circus’ sign and a sectional couch upholstered in green velvet; The en suite bathroom in the ‘pool room’ is encased in framed metal glass panels with a vintage hat stand that has been turned into a towel holder; The stairs feature Collins’ collection of vintage telephones; The informal lounge features a velvetcovered couch and a coffee table found abandoned on the property.

Clockwise from right: The guest toilet features a basin and vanity fashioned from an old lab cabinet, and a vintage mirror; The petite library, with a classic window seat; Willow’s bedroom combines ornate furnishings and custom wallpaper created using a photograph taken backstage at Paris Fashion Week.