Hallway dilemma, Georgian garden flat
Hello there Houzzers. I’m getting to the final stages of renovating a basement Georgian flat. It’s a generous two-bedroom property. There is quite a lot of finishing (new floor, painting) still to do. My dilemma is the flat's wonderful book-lined 18-foot hallway which I would like to open up somewhat. A dividing plasterboard wall (easy to modify) separates this hallway from the main bedroom, see pics.
I’d be so grateful for any suggestions on low-ish cost ideas to open up this separating wall a bit. It feels such a shame to keep it 100% walled off. However I do need to retain some privacy for the bedroom. There is a radiator lining the hallway wall which I do not want to mess with. The best idea I've had is some type of Japanese screens...
Many thanks for any suggestions!
Adrian, London
Facing front entrance of flat
View from front door of flat
Comments (11)
minnie101
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Garden Design Help
Comments (11)It is always difficult to get a real 'feel' for a space from photo's alone however initially I think there are 2 key things you could work on to get privacy and interest. One is vertical greening with climbers and wall shrubs on the fences and against the house. When you get really good cover the few trees in surrounding gardens begin to be 'borrowed' as part of your space. Plants also feel much more intimate and create more interest than bare walls and fences. Some could be in the ground but others might be in large troughs or other containers. An irrigation would be a good investment for summer so that they never go dry. In terms of structure you would get a reasonable size, much more secluded seating area if you have the budget and/or wherewithal to excavate the main garden space. If you used decking as the surface then you wouldn't need to go as far as to install paving. Building retaining walls (fairly short ones) to leave raised beds around the outside would keep the fences up and put you very much in the middle of the planting. This a big job though and access may be an issue? Ultimately it would be very trans-formative for the space and mean that little if any more height in the planting would be required to create enough seclusion. Predictably I am going to say that a scaled plan with careful worked out levels would really pay dividends in this case. I don't believe all gardens necessarily need a scaled plan but this one does if you are going to get the best result....See MoreOpen Plan Ceiling Dilemma
Comments (4)Hi there. this sounds like an interesting project and dilemma. there are a couple of options you could entertain in this instance. 1- drop the centre ceiling so its level withe the perimeter ceiling but leaving a shadow gap of 150mm. using a profile such as the DsL profile below you can easily drop in some linear led . Note the shadow gap in the ceiling of the second image. You can then add in downlighters in the dropped ceiling for general light to highlight that particular zone. 2- You could use the same profile but install it to the lower perimeter ceiling so that the light washes into the raised ceiling such as the picture below. This will add height and by adding in downlighters to the middle areas you can define that zone. Pendants instead of or as well as the downlights can further enhance the living zone depending on if you have an island/table over which to hang some decorative lights. I hope this information helps and good luck with the project....See MorePlan dilemma...
Comments (25)Absolutely. You lot will be helping me!!! I was so looking forward to building a Jonathan design. I did appreciate all your help and your wonderful plan. I hope you and others can share your wisdom when it comes to tweaking this floor plan. Will go to council tomorrow and get a property report. It will also have the floorplan. Will start a new thread for ' advice!' I have a few ideas. I want to tweak the laundry...as it's the entrance too. Maybe place behind sliding doors, replace door with proper front door, blue bathroom needs shower..move door to hall to create one, ( it's at side) put vanity in loo to create powder, sort ensuite..it's the tiny basin pic, sort kitchen Basement..1 bed self contained flat And so on!! Budget was $510k bought for 480 so have 30k to play with ( less hubby's Boxing Day cricket match in Melbourne next year ) Thank you again everyone, for your help....See MoreExtension steps dilemma! (Permitted development)
Comments (19)Thank you Carolina and Minnie. I'm still surprised people are so helpful on these forums- really grateful for everyone's advice! I'm no expert at design for sure - if it's xray guided surgery no problems haha. Carolina I'm glad you think the steps can look OK. I'm beginning to think maybe it might not look so odd. The kitchen design is just whatever the architect put together himself for the plans, but I'm yet to consider how to actually lay it out. Any advice? The idea for the 'utility' is that there will be long closet / cupboards from wall to ceiling with the washer and dryer hidden by those. I know it's called utility but in reality itll just be an extension to the massive hallway in order to get access to the kitchen and downstairs loo. Storing the washer and dryer there was a thought to utilise the remainder of that space. The reason it has to have a door is because the architect says new fire safety rules stipulate there has to be a fire door to a kitchen to prevent fire from spreading to the main house. Otherwise I would have just not kept that door at all and kept a big hallway. Although the hall is disproportionate, with the high ceilings, it is what we really liked about the property and gave a really nice airy feeling to the place. Minnie thank you for that link. What a stunning conservatory they've built. With regards to having one set of steps- I was thinking the same at one point - that maybe I could just keep one set of steps from the 'utility' down - and swap the kitchen and dining space. The only thing that I don't like about that idea is that I wanted there to be a free flow of space to go from the living room down into the extension too. But I guess you can't have everything in life and maybe having a bannister like they have in the link you've sent, would allow for that airy feeling and continuity of light. Should people need to go from the living room down into the kitchen they'd have to go through the 'utility'.......See MoreAdrianh
8 years agolast modified: 8 years ago- PRO
User
8 years agoI'd change the front door for starters. Then, why not consider an entrance porchway by building a stud wall say 6 or 7 feet inside the hallway, there you can have a place to hang coats etc and you do not open the front door straight into what looks like a cross between a hallway and a half room? I'd have to change the bookcases as they are really dated and remove the mix match of small tables with lamps . Change the lighting and consider removing a portion of the bookcase at the end of the hall to create a study area? Technically you're kind of adding a room!
Adrianh
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoAdrianh
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoWell, this is what we did to solve this: I bought several used Georgian window frames off eBay for £40. My carpenter friend smashed up the plasterboard wall and slung the windows in. Much more light. I've still got to stick up some roller blinds on the bedroom side, but for now...
Adrianh
8 years agoPat Auld
8 years ago
Jonathan