Titanic Task
Claire Hart’s rundown property was full of surprises – not least a link with the most famous ship in history
This run-down Liverpool house has been made cosy with some major DIY
It was a friend who pointed out this Victorian home to Claire Hart, who had been house hunting for a month without any luck. ‘I got into my car and viewed straight away, and it was love at first sight,’ she says.
Part of the appeal was its similarity to Claire and her husband Michael Albertina’s previous home. ‘I loved our old place, and used to wish I could just pick it up and move it somewhere else,’ says Claire. A larger garden and parking space were big draws, too. ‘ We had always struggled to park our cars but this house has two garages and parking outside. Plus there is a utility room, which is heaven for me.’
The house had been on the market for a while and required some work. Apart from the outdated decor and utilities, it also needed pinning with tie bars, as the side wall was bulging – a common fault in Victorian buildings and end-of-terraces. This gave the couple the opportunity to purchase the property at an affordable price. ‘It was damp but looked worse than it was,’ says Claire. ‘The house had sat empty for a couple of years and needed a good airing. Once the doors and windows had been open a while, we could see what was just surface damp and what was more serious.’
The place also needed partial rewiring and, like many period properties, some replastering, too. ‘We carried out the smaller plastering jobs ourselves – there’s not much you can’t learn from Youtube,’ says Claire. ‘Virtually all the work was done via online tutorials.’ The couple’s DIY skills also
stretched to fitting the kitchen themselves. ‘ We were working to a tight deadline, as the worktop fitter was coming the next day – but then Michael broke his hand,’ says Claire. Not ones to be deterred, a pack of frozen peas was tied to the injured limb and they got on with the job, with Michael directing and Claire doing the heavy lifting. Now the dated orange-brown scheme is a smart grey, with a spacious dresser and central island.
An Aga inherited with the house wasn’t without its problems either. ‘At first, we used it to heat our water, too,’ explains Claire, ‘ but it kept cutting out, leaving us with no heating or hot water.’ A combi boiler solved the issue and now the Aga is used purely for cooking, and heating the kitchen in winter.
The only room that required professional assistance was the bathroom. A separate bathroom and cloakroom were knocked into one to create a luxurious sanctuary with a freestanding bath. Old carpets were ripped up to reveal floorboards that only needed a sand and varnish to bring out their beauty, and Claire chose reclaimed fixtures and fittings to lend character.
Period houses always have a great sense of history, but this one has a unique story. ‘It was home to an engineer on the Titanic, who lived here with his family at the time of the disaster,’ says Claire. ‘Sadly, he didn’t survive, but he kept the ship afloat as long as possible. I have a poster of the Titanic in the hall that I bought at the local auction house, along with a copy of a letter the engineer wrote to his son during the voyage.’
The timing of their move meant the pair had to start decorating straight away, as Christmas was just three weeks away. ‘We needed at least part of the house to be clean and presentable,’ says Claire, who admits to playing it too safe with the decor before finding design inspiration on Instagram. ‘It helped me be braver with colour and realise that a strong shade doesn’t always make a room feel closed in – sometimes it just works with the space,’ she explains.
Christmas is a favourite time for the couple and daughter Tilly, 14, especially when it comes to decorating the house and dining table. Each year, Claire adds to her collection of decorations, and even has a dedicated festive section in the loft. ‘We have around 17 to dinner,’ she says. ‘I’ll move the table into the music room and extend it with a large sheet of MDF – no one notices at all once it’s dressed for the big day.’