Josie & Jules’ Refreshing Edwardian Flat

Name: Josie and Jules
Location: South East London, UK
Size: 677 square feet
Years lived in: 1 year; Owned

The phrase “that rug really tied the room together” is bandied about a lot these days, and with all due respect to The Dude, it’s become a bit of a cliche. Having said that, can we talk about that rug for a second? Beautiful! Josie and Jules’ House Call in July gave us just a glimpse of their polished style so we were excited to be invited back for brunch to discuss their approach to renovating their (now) smartly proportioned Edwardian flat in South East London.

The hue of the rug is complimented by a subtle splashing of blue in the armchair, cushions, and artwork in the room, as well as through to the kitchen in the large open plan area. “Our next place will just have to be big enough to fit it in properly,” she said, admitting that the rug is probably too big for the space. Indeed, why must we let our spaces define our choice of design if we can have our perfect piece guide our ambitions for the perfect space in which to put it?

Soft furnishing is the least of it, though. Josie and Jules spent about three months on a complete top-to-bottom renovation of the dated property. As they occupy the first floor and garden of a slim Edwardian terrace house, their first challenge was rethinking how the living spaces were going to work for the modern trend of enjoying things like light, space, and function. The flat was reconfigured, turning the old kitchen into a second bedroom/study and converting the two (two!) reception rooms in to an open plan living room and kitchen.

Josie and Jules’ absolute favorite of the newly-completed remodel is that intangible sense of space and brightness that came with opening the back of the kitchen into the side return leading to the garden. Next on the project list is the garden itself, but even left as it is, it serves as a perfectly nice spot for a sunny weekend brunch.

Our Style: Mid-century modern that’s gradually moving towards a more rustic-y Scandi-ness

Inspiration: Years of hoarding beautiful objects and just finding a way for them to all hopefully fit together and hours trawling the internet, planning, and ogling Emily Henderson’s work.

Favorite Element: Having a garden in London feels like the ultimate luxury and the light and airiness of our living area.

Biggest Challenge: Removing a chimney breast. Building control aren’t the easiest to deal with.

What Friends Say: “It looks like a home not a student pad”– I’m not sure why they thought we’d live with posters stuck to the wall, 2-week-old Indian takeaway littering the floor, and a traffic cone decorating our mantelpiece, but at least they’re all pleasantly surprised.

Biggest Embarrassment: For Josie, the garden, her terrible carpet choice for the bedrooms, and the mis-matched paint on the kitchen wall. For Jules, all the little jobs that still need doing like filling gaps in the floorboards.

Proudest DIY: Jules’ shelf-building skills are now pretty impressive but just general DIY skills are now well-honed. We can paint, caulk, sand, hammer, stain, varnish, and chisel with the best of them.

Biggest Indulgence: The OKA rug, which doesn’t quite work in the room but Josie loves it too much to readily admit this.

Best Advice: Don’t buy all your furniture, etc., in advance. Josie couldn’t help herself and now we’re over-crowded and we have already had to put some things in boxes. And just last week we had to say goodbye to an antique chair that had nowhere to live… but it’s okay, it’s gone to a better place *sob*. And, plan – plan and plan and plan.

Dream Sources: Josie really wants a Blakes London kitchen someday, one day…

• Kitchen: Dulux Dusted Moss 3
• Bathroom: Little Greene Paint Company Bone China Blue-Mid
• Living Room: Dulux White Mist
• Hall woodwork: Annie Sloan Old White mixed with Graphite

• Hall rug: Marks & Spencer
• Hall pendant lights in the style of Tom Dixon: Aliexpress

• Sofa: DFS
• Rug: OKA
• Paidge Armchair: West Elm
• Bar cart: Ikea
• Lamp: Ikea
• Chandelier: Pani Jurek on Etsy
• Antique chair: Rolfey’s, Bath
• Stripe cushion: Anthropologie
• Watercolor cushion: H&M
• Small cushion: Zara Home
• Tassel cushion: homemade
• Pink cushion: Eastern Home Décor on Etsy
• Basket: Zara Home
• Paintings: by Josie
• Fiddle-leaf fig tree: House of Plants
• Antique star maps: Storeys

• Kitchen units, appliances, and wood countertop: Ikea
• Crockery: Anthropologie and Zara Home — we will answer queries about any in particular!
• Tea set: Portmeirion secret garden range
• Clock: Rigby and Mac
• Antique map: Storeys
• Rug: H&M

• Wardrobes: Ikea
• 1920s chest of drawers: vintage furniture shop in Crystal Palace, SE London
• Sheepskin rugs: Ikea
• Pink linen cushions: Marks & Spencer
• Bowl: Marks & Spencer

• Print: Sarah and Bendrix
• Basket: Zara Home
• Hand soap and lotion: & Other Stories

• Dancing Egrets: Michelle Morin on Etsy
• Animals print and snow scene: Lottie Stoddart on Etsy
• Framed book: Original Wall
• Women in sea prints: Clare Elsaesser on Etsy
• NASA prints: Print Shop Studio (they don’t seem to do them anymore)

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