Restored to glory
Sharon and David Broadbent have brought a run-down old house back to its prime, enhancing its period features with bold colours, luxurious fittings and creative styling
Finding and buying their beautiful home was as much about being hot off the purchasing blocks as seeing the creative potential beyond its uninspiring interior. Luckily for Sharon and David Broadbent, having pulled out of another house
sale, they found themselves in a position to offer instantly on their fabulous find. ‘We were on holiday at the time but were in touch with our estate agent,’ recalls Sharon. ‘They tipped us off about a house viewing and said we really should go and see it. They sent the pictures on Friday. We flew back on Saturday. On Sunday we did the viewing and put in an offer on Monday.’
The couple loved the house at first sight and weren’t about to risk letting it slip through their fingers. It was large in scale, full of original features with a good and relatively new kitchen.
‘It definitely had potential to suit how we live, too,’ explains Sharon. ‘David works from home quite a bit and there was an office. We wanted a separate dining room and we both really liked this style of architecture and all the features.’
After doing a bit of research on the house, the couple discovered it was originally twice the size and on a large plot. Updates in the Victorian era also included adding handpainted ceilings, stained glass, ornate balustrades and bay window façades. Unfortunately, a run of bad luck meant the house had to be sold, then split up, partially pulled down and the land separated off for development. Many of the features, including the ceilings, had been covered up and so thankfully were protected. ‘By the time we bought the house it had been put back into one, was structurally sound and some of the refurbishment work had been started,’ says Sharon.
The first job Sharon and David tackled was the ramshackle placing of lights and fittings, so they repositioned a lot of the lights to help brighten each room. ‘The casings for the switches were different throughout,’ says Sharon. ‘With a house this size, that was a lot of replacing.’ Next, the whole house was replastered, as most of the walls needed attention. Then all the carpets were removed and the downstairs parquet was sanded and refinished, with new boards and missing areas filled and fitted. The tiled hallway floor was professionally cleaned to bring back its lustre, and radiators were fitted while the floors were up. The fixtures and fittings were replaced in all the bathrooms, including a copper bath in the master bedroom. ‘Ours was the last room to be updated and there was a lot to do,’ says Sharon. ‘One of the windows had been boarded up, and the fireplace, too. We went for a wow-factor bath as the centrepiece in the bedroom, created some gorgeous curved wardrobes and then decided to be brave with the colour.’
Sharon really enjoyed decorating and styling her home and putting her own spin on it. The house had originally been painted in various drab shades, and its large rooms with high ceilings were crying out for rich colours to match the fabulous original fixtures and features. Out of the window went the whites, and Sharon brought a much bolder and luxurious palette to the scheme. Her favourite rooms are definitely the darker ones, including the dining room and her bedroom. ‘I would say I’ve grown in confidence with using colours, especially in this house,’ says Sharon. ‘I did use an interior designer, but it was really to bounce ideas off them. I could see that such grand rooms needed a punch of rich colour and much larger-scale or refinedlooking furniture to suit the house. I also had a great antiques contact where I bought many of the pieces and who would find me things specially.’
Although Sharon likes her home to look luxurious all year round, at Christmas there is an extra reason to be creative with colour – layering decorations and repurposing accessories to make elaborate ornamental displays. ‘I like my house to feel quite magical, with plenty to see, so I mix things up on the mantels and tabletops,’ she says. Sharon’s home-styling enthusiasm looks certain to continue as there are plans to redesign other parts of the house, including a whole series of basement and cellar areas to refurbish and redecorate.
‘For the moment we’re happy, but when Teddy is older the idea is to create a boys’ space,’ says Sharon. ‘There are plans for a cinema room, a playroom and a wine cellar but, whatever happens with this house, I’m not sure we could ever go back to living in just a blank canvas.’