WHO LIVES HERE?
Rebekah lives here with her husband Craig, their daughters Amelie, and Autumn, labrador Bertie and gerbils Kiki and Toto.
Rebekah had a clear vision for her home's renovation: to transform a run of smaller, disconnected rooms into a generous kitchen, dining and living space with improved flow and doors opening directly out to the garden.
A space where cooking, entertaining and relaxing could all happen at once, without losing the 1970s character she fell for in the first place.
‘I wanted to create a space where friends and family could gather while I was making dinner,' she says. ‘A room that felt relaxed, social and full of life.'
Shortly after moving in, the couple discovered a host of unexpected issues. Unsafe electrics and plenty of botched DIY jobs meant plans to extend were put on hold while essential repairs took priority. ‘It wasn't what we expected,' she admits.
‘But having to live here for five years before starting the renovation did help us to understand what did and didn't work about the house.'
What the couple did love about the house were the original 1970s features, including the walnut staircase and the large garden. But they didn't like the cramped ground-floor layout, which felt cut off from the outdoor space. ‘We had this lovely big garden, but it just wasn't connected to the house at all,' says Rebekah.
An architect helped with planning, and the couple hired a local builder who kept costs down by doing much of the work himself. Feeling overwhelmed by the design decisions, Rebekah brought in interior designer Natalie Johnson of Bower Interior Design.
‘Natalie made every decision feel stress-free,' she says. ‘She helped me work out what I actually wanted and stopped me from feeling overwhelmed by it all.'
Natalie's design focused on how the family would be using their kitchen every day, so that the new room was both functional and practical. ‘The flow works so well in here now, and there are no clutter hot spots,' says Rebekah.
‘We love how Natalie used the structure of the new extension to create cosy corners in the open-plan layout, which gives us a clear separation between cooking and relaxing areas at different times of the day.'
The finished kitchen extension is now the social heart of the home. The oven sits in the island, freeing up worktop space and allowing Rebekah to cook while staying part of the conversation.
‘When we're hosting, friends say it's like watching a cookery programme,' she laughs. ‘Before, entertaining was stressful. Now it feels effortless.'
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