OLIVER PROUDLOCK LOUISE CONNOLLY AND FIANCÉE EMMA OPEN THE DOORS TO THEIR NEWLY RENOVATED LONDON HOME
FORMER ‘MADE IN CHELSEA’ STAR OLIVER PROUDLOCK AND HIS FIANCEE EMMA LOUISE CONNOLLY OPEN THE DOORS TO THEIR NEWLY RENOVATED WEST LONDON HOME
You would expect well-heeled Oliver Proudlock to have an impressive pad considering he’s a school pal of the Duke of Sussex and a former star of Made In Chelsea. And you’d be right! The 31 year old and his fiancée, model Emma Louise Connolly, went from reality stars to interior designers this year as they began a huge makeover on their terraced house in Barons Court, west London.
After completing the extensive renovations, the couple, who got engaged in August, have now opened the doors to their beautiful four-storey, three-bedroom abode.
Their project has even featured on their own Youtube series From Crib To Casa, and their honest take on the trials and tribulations of home improvements have seen one million viewers tune in.
‘We wanted to appeal to a younger audience to share our experiences and somehow make a renovation less daunting. We had outgrown my flat in west Kensington, and dreamt of owning our own home,’ Proudlock says.
‘We were devastated when we got gazumped on what we thought was our perfect house in Shepherd’s Bush. So we left it a while before we started looking again.’
The pair ruled out Chelsea on cost and also because they wanted a quieter life. ‘Even if we had the budget for buying in Chelsea, we wouldn’t have ended up there,’ admits Proudlock, who insists he has earned his own money from the age of 17.
‘We absolutely love it round here, and wanted to be that little bit away from it all, where it’s quieter. Renovating this place has opened up a whole new world to us. Who knew dimmer switches could be so, so sexy?’
The couple confess they blew their £300,000 budget on the development after inserting a bespoke marbletopped deepblue Terence Ball kitchen, trendy Crittall-style windows and splashed out on Mylands paint, which is around £51 per pot!
Deep and royal blues were chosen as the colour palette and match the colour of the stones in Emma’s engagement ring, which was designed by Proudlock.
28 year old says, adding: ‘Instead, it stretched to 15 months. The project just grew and grew in our desire to put our own stamp on the place.’
The duo decided it would be helpful to have a project co-ordinator, so they called in the services of Georgina Walker-duncalf, director of G&G Designs. ‘We realised we needed someone to rein us in,’ Emma laughs, adding: ‘The infinite choices for possible paint colours, tiles and marbles became overwhelming.’
Proudlock adds: ‘She helped us to recreate that feeling of ultimate relaxation you have when you arrive in a gorgeous hotel.’
Emma has since become a guru in co-ordinating bui lders, electricians and plumbers between modelling jobs, as well as handling a flood in the basement! ‘We have learnt so, so much in such a short time,’ she says, adding: ‘I have always been crazy about interior shows, but doing a house ourselves was such an education. There were certainly tears at times.’