ALL IN GOOD TIME
With a lot of patience and a little luck, Jess Taylor and her husband James were able to create the home they had always wanted
When Jess Taylor and her husband James first saw the Victorian terrace they now call home, they dismissed it straight away. ‘It was completely out of our price range,’ says Jess. ‘Wandsworth in southwest London is where we wanted to settle and we’d been renting in the area for a year waiting for the right property to come onto the market. James still has the email I sent him with the property details entitled ‘If Only’. However, with falling house prices, in 2009 the couple’s pipe dream turned into a reality when they put in a low offer that was accepted. ‘We were thrilled.’ recalls Jess. ‘Overall, the house was in good condition, but the kitchen was separate from the living and dining areas and it was small with an odd layout. There were good-sized bedrooms upstairs but just one small bathroom and the loft hadn’t been extended.’
adding character
Aesthetically the house wasn’t to the couple’s taste. ‘Most of the period features were missing,’ says Jess. ‘There were double-glazed windows where the traditional sash windows would have been, and the Victorian tiled path outside had been concreted over, but a bit of hard work didn’t put us off. We also wanted to reinstate the period details, redesign the kitchen and convert the loft.’
Initially, Jess and James gave the house a lick of paint. They installed sash windows before they moved in and then spent the next couple of years just enjoying their new home. In 2011 the couple tackled the kitchen. ‘It was a huge undertaking and pretty stressful,’ says Jess. ‘I was heavily pregnant with William, who’s now eight, and it was a race against time to get it finished. Being a terrace meant there was only one way in and out of the house and for five months the downstairs had a carpet of dust and rubble. We should have moved out, but being “on site” meant I could do a daily walk around with the builders and keep things on track.’ As a passionate cook, Jess wanted a large kitchen and knew the new space would be worth all the dust.
attic extension
Two years after the kitchen was finished, Jess and James started on the loft conversion. ‘Compared to the kitchen, the loft was easy and the work was undertaken with minimum fuss and mess,’ says Jess. ‘We’d been given advice to convert the space into two bedrooms with an en suite to add more value to the house, but we ignored this and created one big master with a separate bathroom. We wanted the space to work for us rather
favourite room
‘I’m passionate about cooking and having people around the table, so the kitchen really is the heart of our home’
than think about the house value and we’re so pleased we did. Our bedroom is a light, calming space and its size allowed us to fit in a giant bed. And we have a gorgeous big bathroom with a freestanding bath. We designed it taking inspiration from hotels we’ve stayed in, so it always feels like such a treat using it.’
More recently a new boiler and radiators have been installed, laminate flooring has been replaced with engineered walnut, bespoke bookshelves built and all the rooms painted and updated. ‘I used to get nervous making choices about our home, but my confidence has grown as we’ve renovated,’ says Jess. ‘I now choose paint colours, soft furnishings and statement furniture that have longevity and complement the house. The result is a simple, elegant but homely space that is a pleasure to be in. We are so proud to have breathed character and life back into this property, and in turn it has provided us with a wonderful, much-loved family home.’