I’ve used sunny colours to create a happy home Interior stylist Maxine Brady used all of her know-how to inject colour and pattern into her 1850s terrace

Maxine Brady called on her décor know-how to transform a neglected house into a stylish home filled with colour and pattern

When interior stylist and TV presenter, Maxine Brady, purchased her Victorian terrace house in Brighton, she knew she was buying a complete wreck. Transforming her home over the past five years has not only been her passion project but it was also the inspiration for starting her award-winning lifestyle blog and an interior design studio.

‘My house hadn’t been lived in for seven years and it looked very unloved. As an interior stylist, I knew I could make it beautiful, even on a tiny budget,’ she says.

‘At the same time as the renovation, I decided to launch my interiors blog to chart my home’s renovation journey and show others in the same boat as me that you don’t need to have lots of money to have a beautiful home. I wanted to inspire anyone else who plans on renovating a small house.’

She moved into the house in March 2016 and had a long list of projects to take on. The garden was overgrown, with a large climbing bush, which blocked the back door. The bathroom dated back to the 1990s and it was leaking into the kitchen below. The kitchen was also so damp that it attracted snails that would trail across the floor. ‘All the rooms

‘I’m so proud of what I’ve achieved in the past five years and – the best bit – it’s never finished!’

‘I don’t tend to follow trends and I only have things in my home that I truly love as this keeps clutter at bay.’

needed attention – windows, doors, carpets, roof – so there hasn’t been a bit of this house that I haven’t worked my DIY magic on,’ she says. ‘The layout needed reconfiguring too, so that it worked in a smarter way.’

Maxine decided to live in her home for six months before embarking on any large renovation projects. ‘I wanted to get a feel for the space to see how I used my home and work out what I wanted to change. It was awful living with the dreadful carpets and draughty windows, but it saved me making costly mistakes,’ she reveals. Her original plan was to do the house up bit by bit, first by making it watertight by fixing the windows, roof and guttering before dealing with the damp.

However, after a disastrous leak from the bathroom taps, when water poured through the kitchen ceiling, Maxine realised she couldn’t wait any longer. ‘My builder suggested I should tackle the bathroom and kitchen, then knock down the living room wall all in one go,’ she says. ‘It was super stressful with a puppy who put his nose into everything, and the dust was so intense that I ended up moving out for a few weeks. But it meant that all the messy stuff was done in just a few short months.’

Once the living areas had been refurbished, Maxine took on one big job a month and tried to do as much as she could herself. ‘I had a to-do list as long as my arm but broke it down into mini projects. I finished one area before moving onto the next and I could see the house taking shape,’ she explains. ‘Weekends were spent stripping off woodchip wallpaper, smashing out cheap fitted cupboards or digging in the garden.’ Maxine restored the original features and replaced anything that wasn’t in keeping with her home style. ‘I had this awful, and very dangerous, eighties-style banister, which I replaced with spindles to match the Victorian handrail. The old wooden front door was warped, so a modern one was fitted that makes a strong statement but can also withstand the coastal wind and rain,’ she says, ‘and I got rid of a few internal doors in the hallway to allow the space to flow.’

‘All the rooms needed attention – windows, doors, carpets, roof – so there isn’t a bit of this house that I haven’t worked my DIY magic on.’

‘I had a to-do list as long as my arm, but I broke it down into mini projects. I made sure I finished one area before moving onto the next’

After two years of hard work, Maxine moved on to the décor of the house. ‘My style is very considered. As I live in a tiny house, every decision I make has to be practical as well as stylish. I don’t tend to follow trends and I only have things in my home that I truly love as this keeps clutter at bay.’ Influenced by her travels abroad, Maxine loves to bring back items that will work in her home. ‘I’ve brought a light fitting from Spain, rugs and ceramics from Morocco and art from New York and San Francisco,’ she says, ‘I’m also heavily influenced by my vibrant hometown, Brighton. The exterior of my house is painted in a peppermint colour, which is the same shade as the seafront’s promenade. It’s a sunny colour that makes my house a happy home.’

Maxine admits she will continue to make changes, but she feels very much at ease here now. ‘When I open the front door, I feel relaxed,’ she says. ‘I’m proud of what I’ve achieved in five years and – the best bit – it’s never finished! I keep making adjustments so my home feels like new all the time.’

Maxine went for an L-shape layout in her kitchen to make it more sociable and had a window installed to benefit from the garden view and allow sunlight to flood in

Rather than having wall units that would overwhelm the space, Maxine made the shelving out of scaffolding boards and copper piping

Maxine painted her house in a peppermint shade to replicate the cheerful hue of Brighton’s metal promenade

The kitchen handles are created from plumber’s copper piping, and Maxine made them herself. ‘I wanted to give my off-the-shelf cabinets elevated style, and the best way to do that was with bespoke handles,’ she says

The living and dining rooms were originally separate spaces, so Maxine blocked up the doorway and knocked down a wall to create an open-plan living area

‘As soon as I saw the Laura Ashley wirework art at a press show, I had to have it as it’s so unusual. It’s a statement piece and adds drama to my open-plan dining area,’ says Maxine

Mixing and matching her styles, this button-back armchair complements the IKEA Ivar cabinet Maxine painted in Kitchen Disco by COAT Paints, which match the other pops of peach around her home Most of Maxine’s art is picked up from junk shops and trips abroad. The framed Miles Davis record belonged to her parents and adds colour to the scheme. IKEA shelves and black frames from Habitat complete the wall Although not original to the house, Maxine has kept the Victorian-style fireplace that she dusted with white paint to highlight the ironwork details. The artwork is by Lumitrix Maxine stripped back the staircase by hand then decorated the risers with mosaic-style tiles from Tile Giant and painted the steps with Urbane Grey paint by Little Greene

The flamingo print was found abandoned in a bin, which Maxine jazzed up by painting the frame with pink chalk paint. ‘It has to be one of the most asked about prints in my home when I share it on my Instagram account @maxinebradystyling,’ she says The bedroom is next on Maxine’s to-do list. Her ottoman-style bed from Button & Sprung is dressed in fresh linen sheets from scooms The vintage wardrobe was a Gumtree find. Maxine painted it with Annie Sloane white chalk paint, so the furniture blends seamlessly into her room Making the most of every inch of space, this handy cabinet was a 1970s TV stand in a former life. Maxine added hairpin legs and painted it with Farrow & Ball’s Hague Blue The guest bedroom is decorated in Great Waves wallpaper by Cole & Son, which is now discontinued. ‘I’ll never take it down as this wallpaper is irreplaceable,’ she says. ‘It’s always sunny in here, so it’s a happy room for guests to stay in’

Maxine’s biggest indulgence was her roll-top bath from Bathroom Takeaway. ‘It’s always been my dream to have one,’ Maxine reveals. The ceiling had to be raised to fit in the shower, which cost an extra £1,000 on top of her budget. ‘But it was worth it for my dream bathroom,’ she says Wall shelves by Dowsing & Reynolds make for a pretty display space. Filled with plants, artwork, candles and accessories, they help to add character to the bathroom