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Victorian Renovation in London Part 3 - Finish line?

2 years ago

last modified: 2 years ago

Hi all, someone suggested starting this yet again, as we got to 200 comments and the thread was crashing. See link below for the original threads.

We are supposedly a week from finishing the interior...which seems a bit ambitious. The kitchen is not even installed yet!

[https://www.houzz.co.uk/discussions/victorian-house-inspiration-please-dsvw-vd~4802325[(https://www.houzz.co.uk/discussions/victorian-house-inspiration-please-dsvw-vd~4802325)

[https://www.houzz.co.uk/discussions/victorian-renovation-in-london-part-2-dsvw-vd~4911251[(https://www.houzz.co.uk/discussions/victorian-renovation-in-london-part-2-dsvw-vd~4911251)

Featured Answer

Resh
Original Author

2 years ago

I forgot to say earlier - I sneaked a slightly juvenile design into the stained glass panels. They look traditional. I did the design as a Star Wars meme: each panel is the Death Star flanked by a pair of TIE Fighters. I told my wife this. She is both exasperated and amused...

Comments (240)

leonardoflondon
2 years ago
@Resh - what about sewing grass seed now? You can't go on it for a while, but might be a better option if you've got a large expanse. Can also mix varieties if you have more shady/damper/drier areas
Julie Norris
2 years ago
I'll be watching this @Resh We are thinking of seeding in a month or so, we have about 200sq/m of dirt at present! and a dog (so the seeded dirt will be emergency fenced off. Grass better grow fast!
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Also, top tip, folks! If installing an island with plumbing/electrics in it, make sure you have an access panel somewhere to get to them - especially for the plumbing. I speak from bitter experience in the last house. This is a particular problem with Belfast sinks mounted, you guessed it, under a stone worktop, meaning you can't easily take the sink out. I had this in my old house - learned my lesson the hard way, A bad situation when your dishwasher or waste disposal unit are leaking or need replacing, and you find out that there are a load of connections you need to get to that are hidden behind the sink. Even worse if that Belfast sink has an Insinkerator waste disposal plumbed into it and the dishwasher is plumbed into that - the bits you need to get to are directly behind the unit, and not easily reachable from the space in the cabinet under that sink, even if you cut out the back panel. Very awkward. So that stone worktop has to come off (not realistic) or you have to cut through a cabinet back or two with a jigsaw (better option by far - but you do it very carefully). Which is what I did - replacing the hacked up back panel with an access panel held in place by magnets, for the next time. Trust me, it's easier to do this at installation stage! This island is 90cm wide, and one side is the seating area, which is behind the row of front cabinets, which include sink, fridge, dishwasher etc. The whole kickpanel in the seating area will be mounted on a stud frame which has six metal threads installed, so that the panel (plywood, as we determined above) bolts to these six screws. Need access to the plumbing and drain? Drop the panel in minutes, and everything is in front of you and easily accessed...
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AMB
2 years ago
Yay for real grass! I really can't stand this trend for artificial turf - nature doesn't need any more plastic! We need as much nature as we can get.

I have a 2m by 5m patch of lawn that I mow once a month, 6 months of the year, and the whole operation takes twenty minutes. The lawn mower has detachable and collapsible components so it folds away neatly.

I am moving to a house that has a concrete front and back garden, and although it is opposite an expansive park I will be ripping it up and laying turf, planting native flowers, and I am even considering planting a crab apple tree.
AMB
2 years ago
Is that an oak tree Resh?
AMB
2 years ago
Love the original window too. I'm so glad you are restoring original features.
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
It is an oak - I absolutely love the thing. We also have bay, holly, yew, apples, pear, damson, holme oak, leylandii, a willow and a load of other bushes/shrubs I haven't identified. Quite the lot to keep in trim, but I feel lucky to have inherited such a mature garden in a city. We did some heavy pruning at the end of last year as it had all been untouched since 2010...the cherry tree and a fir had died and had to be removed, sadly.

Oh yes - and the Japanese Knotweed. Let's hope we've seen the last of that particular feature of the garden...
louisesnichol
2 years ago
Please keep your grass. Our ridiculously long garden is grass and although it feels like painting the forth bridge at times (as soon as you’ve weeded and mowed the lot you have to start all over again) it’s so worth it. We have 3 kids and they love the garden- it’s like an enormous play room in summer. Sand pit is your friend- my husband dug one out, lined it and put decking round it and the older two (4&6) spend whole days playing in it. A garden is a lot of work but so so worth it. And you seem like someone who appreciates a bit of hard work
Congratulations to you and Mrs Resh!
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Garden looks a lot more sorted out with snow on it! Nature does the best landscaping, it seems...
olivia38
2 years ago
Glorious.
leonardoflondon
2 years ago
ouch, knotweed! Have you notified the council? Some areas they will come out and help eradicate (they do where I am)
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
It's in its third year of treatment under a proper plan, so I'm not too worried. No sign of it returning when we bought the house - and we checked thoroughly as did the mortgage surveyor!

Took a couple of pics from the bottom of the garden. Will be great when the weatherproofing is finished and I can take the tarpaulin off the glass doors to the study, just below the glass wall on the master bathroom. Relax folk - we are secluded, so taking a shower is not an exercise in exhibitionism!
leonardoflondon
2 years ago
looking great!
wendy Anderson
2 years ago
The house looks stunning - I'm hugely envious and I love my home!
Angie
2 years ago
Oh Resh, it's looking so lovely. And such great news about the baby. I've loved following your journey thus far and look forward to seeing what's to come.
Renovation Virgin
2 years ago
Hi Resh. How are you doing? Anymore updates? Hope your wife is feeling well too? RV
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Hi RV - just a small update. We decided to paint the wood doors, as unpainted ones look a bit weird against a wood floor. A before pic and some afters...we went with dark green to complement the kitchen, as well as the wallpaper design. Didn't fancy more grey wood!
louisesnichol
2 years ago
Hi Resh, do you mind me asking what colour your paint is on the stairs and dado? Am about to paint mine and agonising over paint colours.
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
It's F&B Ammonite, but mixed in Leyland oil paint.

The glass in the study has been put above the doors and the tarp is finally off! Still a mess but the big stuff is done...
Valerie Wingrove
2 years ago
You’re home is looking amazing, can’t wait for the final photos and I’m sure you feel the same. Good luck.
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Thanks for the kind comment. I've seen lots of period houses recently on here where the designers have gone rather more modern than I have. Hoping that this rather more classic look was the right choice...I wanted something that will stay in style and not need a revamp for quite a while - won't be doing any decorating with a new family to cope with!
Renovation Virgin
2 years ago
Looks so so beautiful. I have serious house envy Resh. Thanks so much for the update. Please keep posting.
Angie
2 years ago
Classic look is the way to go in my view. It'll stand the test of time. And you've beautifully blended classic with some lovely contemporary touches. A great home in which to raise your family.
Jonathan
2 years ago
I was talking to a friend last week who has a very crisp contemporary house but it has to remain flawless to continue to look good and therefore constantly requires work.
I think you deserve to sit back and enjoy the house for a while
nmlondon
2 years ago
Resh, absolutely loved the recent photos here and on the other site - the hallway and the entrance look so elegant. That wallpaper, if I remember correctly, the choice of your wife, is absolutely fantastic.
PRO
OnePlan
2 years ago
@Resh - would be great to put all your before and after pics into an ideabook on your home page ! I’m sure people would love to see them all together !
Congrats on baby ! Lovely news !! By now I guess you have found out if it’s to be a blue nursery or a pink one ? Exciting times ahead !
Enjoy concentrating on family rather than the build!! :-)
AMB
2 years ago
Eww, gender stereotyping.... :(
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Heh. Given I'm the man in our house and was the advocate for pink stuff (including our bedroom, which is pink/black/brass in scheme, and front door stained glass panels), gender stereotypes don't work in our household!
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
But I get what you were asking OnePlan - I want to k ow what we are having (for curiosity rather than preference). Mrs Resh does not, and she calls the shots on this one as she's doing all the hard work...
PRO
OnePlan
2 years ago
Just collected my daughter from Rugby practice - no gender stereotyping here !! ( was just a way of asking )
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Mrs Resh's study was painted today. It's a new room, in the bottom of what was the former lift shaft. Long and narrow - 3.5m x 2m. The idea was that she could work whilst looking out at the garden; with the glass doors open in the summer. By the end of May there should be a patio outside that she can step out onto - but with a baby rather than a laptop given that Jr is due in August. Hopefully this room will serve as well for relaxation as for work...right now it needs quite a lot of finishing...
E D
2 years ago
I don't know how you and your wife do it, Resh, but you make every space look amazing.

Even an ex lift shaft... :)
wendy Anderson
2 years ago
Just when I had got my house envy under control, Resh! What a beautiful room that is going to be. How is Mrs Resh feeling? Hopefully over the worst of the early weeks
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Thanks for the nice comments! She's is tired, but otherwise fine although we have 20 week scan tomorrow so we are both a bit nervous. She's very ready for the builders to be done too...nice as they are.
AMB
2 years ago
Do a video tour when it is finished! :)
Kiya Kelly
2 years ago
I've absolutely loved reading this, the house really does look so beautiful. I hope you can enjoy it now that you're pretty much at the end of renovations.
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
20 week pregnancy scan came up OK, so big relief for Mrs Resh and me. Now the guys have to push to finish the interior over the next week, so we can crack on with the patio and lawn. I'd rally like my wife to have a great garden to relax in during the final stages of pregnancy, and when she is off work with Jr.

Will this project ever end? Almost 7 months since we got the keys. Must stay on task!
olivia38
2 years ago
Great news! In no time your baby will be here and you'll all be enjoying the fruits of your labour! In all senses!
T Gray
2 years ago
Really glad to hear the scan went well Resh. That news has cheered me right up today. :D
PRO
colourhappy
2 years ago
Resh, thank you for sharing all of this with us, it is amazing. I would have thought some magazines would have been in touch with you, it should be shared. It would be great if you ever have time (as if) to list the paint colours you used as it is so different seeing them in situ. I have renovated 4 houses with young children and they have always found it quit exciting. Good luck to you all.
wendy Anderson
2 years ago
That is the best news, Resh! So pleased for you both. Just need to push those builders over the finish so you both have time to enjoy yoyr home before life changes forever!
Carolina
2 years ago
Ref to the soaking tub thread: you could consider a wood fired one.
PRO
OnePlan
2 years ago
Ihahe a wood fired one in my garden ! Made by a company called Rustic Tubs ...Andy someone ?! Lovely chap !
Carly Caveney
2 years ago
Fantastic work resh I love your house. The oldies are the best even if they are full of giant spiders! ( I just read that in your comments earlier in the thread) :-) bring on the soaking tub in the garden !
menageriefun
2 years ago
Resh

I saw this on Instagram and had to do a double take as my first thought was x-wing fighters and a Death Star! I hope it’s all coming together
Claire M
2 years ago
Wow!
PRO
Feature Radiators
2 years ago
A skinny cast iron or steel column radiator would look fab in the hall. Let me know if you need a hand sizing up.

Radiators for hallways - restricted depth · More Info

Radiators for hallways - restricted depth · More Info

Radiators for hallways - restricted depth · More Info

Or you could go for something ultra minimal

Radiators for hallways - restricted depth · More Info
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Thanks - I have already fitted a horizontal column radiator in the hall: I have done this in most common areas. It's out of shot in the photo. In terms of off-whites, we have not used any. Either pure brilliant white (kitchen, window woodwork etc), or F&B Ammonite (the grey on the staircase etc) are the neutrals. I looking at something for the kitchen as the pure white is a bit harsh.
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
Hi all - thought I had better start another section as this is a bit long now!

https://www.houzz.co.uk/discussions/victorian-renovation-in-london-part-4-snagging-and-garden-dsvw-vd~5234656
Resh
Original Author
2 years ago
.
PRO
Hampstead Design Hub
last year
Hi there! Great colours in living room.
Resh thanked Hampstead Design Hub

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