Name: Chris & Steve
Location: London, UK
Size: Enormous!
Lived in: Since 1993
When Chris and Steve bought their historic North London house, it had been divided up into eight flats and fallen into disrepair. But they loved it and slowly started restoring it to its 19th-century self, while turning it into a colorful family house for themselves and their three children...
"I figured I could take any color found in the original stained glass," says Chris, a film costume maker who works at home out of a bright turquoise-colored office. "We came from a small flat that was painted white, of course, to make it look bigger. A friend pointed out that because the house was so big we could paint it any color we wanted!" The living room ceiling was color mixed from a sample of Colman's mustard. The deep orange bedroom was inspired by a goldfish she spotted in the pond outside the window on a "particularly miserable" gray London day. "It jumped out at me," she says, "and I thought, 'there's the color of the bedroom'!"
The enormous eat-in kitchen -- which had been turned into a whole flat -- was restored to its original purpose, painted red, fitted with a custom-built kitchen and pieces like an ornately carved antique Afghan chicken coop used for storage. They recuperated a huge storage wall unit from the school across the street and downsizing friends gave them extra couches that were too big to fit in their apartments.
It took a lot of work to get the house into shape. "We had dry rot, wet rot, rising damp, and fruiting bodies," Chris says, citing a few common English real estate headaches that involve frightening quantities of mold and mildew. The family room in the attic -- now a gleaming red space with floor pillows, couches, a TV and music equipment for her three kids in their teens and early 20s -- was a wreck. "Steve removed five bags of dead pigeons from up there," Chris says. "It was covered in black soot. It took like three years to remove the smell."
Chris said that while the house had been neglected, it had good bones. "We took down walls that had been added and put it back to the way it was in 1870. It's been quite a slow process -- it's had to be. Anyway we're not ever leaving. Where would we go? The kids love it here, it's a good party house. Nothing but good things happen here. From the moment we walked in here, it was a happy house."
- Kristin Hohenadel blogging from rue Vieille du Temple, Paris, France. If you have an idea for a European house tour, please write kristinh @ apartmenttherapy . com
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I like it, but why is everything pushed up against the wall? It looks a bit unfinished. Like they just moved in and dropped all the furniture. I do love some of their elements though.
view blogazar's profile
Look like a dorm/post-college living to me. There's something sad about the space.
view workingrl180's profile
I LOVE this house. So cozy and lived in. Beautiful use of color. I especially adore the red/teal in the kitchen.
view judes's profile
What a fun house, no wonder the kids still like to hang out there. I'm really touched by Chris's line, "Nothing but good things happen here". If you feel that way about a place, you know you're home.
The pigeon story, although gross, is kind of inspiring to me as well. My husband had to clean out a prodigious amount of rat turds from our new attic, before we could raise the ceilings and make it vaulted. We're still in the middle of renovation, so it's nice to see proof there's a light at the end of the tunnel.
view SFGail's profile
I love the brightness, the shelf above the faucets on the clawfoot tub, and all the color!!
Anyone can own a house but it takes creativity and dedication to make it "home".
I love that the house looks like a labor of love and still has some rough edges; it looks lived in, and loved, and really that's what makes it such a beautiful space.
view Melissa82's profile
This is one crazy mix-up house!
view rexrayfan's profile
the kitchen reminds me a little of the dr's house in the movie running with scissors... for anyone who likes interiors (which would include all of us on this site) should check the movie out.. real great! good movie as well
view dailydesignspot's profile
The enormous eat-in kitchen -- which had been turned into a whole flat -- was restored to its original purpose, painted red, fitted with a custom-built kitchen and pieces like an ornately carved antique Afghan chicken coop used for storage.
I really think it'd be wiser to store your chickens outside.
Other than that, this is one groovy home!
view Blandwagon's profile
wonderful. such deep rich colour that goes perfect for a house with this act and character. I love that it is a home, not a designer show room for a childless metro couple.
view TheoJ's profile
That kitchen would make me go insane, but other than that I love this house. You can just tell that happy, creative people live here.
view gertie's profile
The first picture looks like they pushed everything in the corner to clean the floor.
view besimple's profile
Messy, unfinished and far too full of junky mis-matched and untidy furniture/stuff.
Just because you have a large space doesn't mean you have to fill it with whatever you can find - a few carefully edited pieces would look so much nicer.
What a waste of a great building - this is the kind of house where I go in and start stressing about how clean what I'm touching is...
view Violetsrose's profile
Love it and the friendly, creative feel. Especially the kitchen. And are they paintings of the house itself on the mantel?
It is truly enormous. The work must never stop.
view Lesley - London's profile
Love it. Love the color, love the objects, love every bit of it. I can imagine the houses of the people who hate it - very clean, very spare, very modern. These houses can be beautiful, but they make me feel like I'm in a waiting room. I think this is a very basic temperamental difference, and one which can't really be overcome. I always wonder what happens when the people who need color and interesting things to look at marry the people who need empty space and neutral tones. It must be so painful.
view pyewacket's profile
I just LOVE it. The kitchen is my favorite.
Somehow, everything in this house fits with the Gothical style and atmosphere, but in a very fun and light-hearted way.
view nausved's profile
The place has nice bones but a little nuance would go a long long way into making it more inviting. The clutter also gets very unnerving.
view joebelt's profile
so let me guess:
you guys aren't minimalists?
view paulmuscat's profile
Spicey! I love it, it looks like a home.
And that top room is almost tipi-like, I'd so be doinhg some drumming up there....
view PapaQuebec's profile
Wow! That is some bold use of color. It's fun to see something so different from the clean, modern looks of most houses. :) It's not my taste, but rock on!
view Aimeeroo's profile
I really like the s&c letters. Where were they purchased from?
view DianaRead's profile
Love the color combo in the kitchen. The burnt orange with turquoise. Neat!
view Nevis's profile
Mustard yellow and hot pink. My worst nightmare.
view rexrayfan's profile
How would one know how the house looks it's such a mess. Don't English people know how to clean their homes? I've never seen a clean one.
view goddessphx's profile
It is really not my cup of tea, but different strokes for different folks. As long as they are happy what else matters??
view Betty14's profile
That is what I am missing!! I have the red wall in my kitchen
but it was not quite right! The light teal windows!!!! Perfect!
Thank you! Now I don't have to repaint my whole kitchen!! Just add the light teal color to my window and above the stove!! I love the colors and especially the carved chicken coup storage!! Taking something and re purposing it is one of my favorite things to do!! Sounds like it was a lot of really hard work! You did a great job!
view KitchenNooknCook's profile
Oh, and I saw the yellow ceiling!! Red walls, light teal windows and door, yellow ceiling and cabinets! It will say good morning, you are alive and well!!! Thanks so much for sharing your home.
view KitchenNooknCook's profile
Hi,
I like the white sofa under the window shot. It's a pity contributors don't share shots of themselves. Regarding the comments about your place being messy, I must say that I find it refreshingly unpretentious. I personally like going to people's houses and seeing that they haven't tidied up for me! That makes me feel they accept me. Also, too many interiors are posed with a strong bias towards indulgence and materialism and consumerism. Your place feels genuine, even if the color would be overpowering for me, personally, and even if I'd be wanting to close all the loo seats in the house! Finally, nice to know it's a happy family home.
view Kaks's profile