Once home to a couple of mice – now the ‘galactic centre of fun’
WHEN mining engineer Fraser McQueen bought his terraced house in Splott, Cardiff, two years ago he knew it could be politely called a “project”.
“When I bought the house it was in a really terrible state,” said 27-year-old Fraser.
“It was like living in a time machine that took you back to the 1950s. The carpets had carpet underneath them, the walls were soaked and the ceiling tiles were a fire hazard. But that said – it did have charm.”
Fraser and his parents set to work renovating the house. His favourite part of the house is now the kitchen.
Fraser said: “The kitchen was a 2m by 2m little box that probably hadn’t been cleaned in 15 years and had an oven that was rusting from the inside out. There were also two little mice who were living in there, as well as leaky taps.
“As soon as I walked in I knew it had to go. I wanted to turn it into something I’d call the galactic centre of fun and creativity for my family and friends.
“I decided to tear it all out and make do with a camping stove and build a new extension on the back.”
Fraser, who also has an interest in beekeeping, turned this kitchen into something that would not look out of place in a traditional country cottage.
“The table is my favourite item in the whole room” he said.
“It is about 120 years old and it was my mum’s mum’s. It is battered, beaten and weather stained. But it has a lovely porcelain handle in a draw that comes out the front. It is perfect for putting hot pans on with a little fold out bit which makes it extra big so you can get four people round it for breakfast in the morning.”
With a job in mining, Fraser needs to pay attention to details. Unfortunately this perfectionism can be time consuming. He says: “Me and my dad picked out the floor tiles ourselves – it took about two hours. They are called country farmhouse.
“I am very proud that my mum, dad and I put it together. I did all the electrics and my dad did the plumbing.
“My mum helped decorate it and she chose the light fitting. We have a lovely sky light that lets in lots of light that makes it bright and airy. It is a welcoming home for delicious life.
“I just wish I had more herbs growing on the windowsills.” metallics etc and they can all be used to add textural interest to your walls.
There really is no reason why this charismatic element shouldn’t grace most room schemes. So is there a special way to combine texture? This very much depends on the finished look you are trying to create.
Firstly consider the design style of the room, adding texture to a simple traditional room could be just a matter of matt painted walls with gloss finished traditional furniture and plain textural fabrics.
Even a monochromatic room scheme that is made up of just tones of one colour can look incredible if you have enough textural contrast.
A sofa in a crushed velvet or chenille with metal furniture and a silky rug works together perfectly.
So while texture may not be the very first thing you consider when decorating a room, why not adopt a professional designer’s approach and give it due consideration.