Houzz Tours
House Tours
Houzz Tour: A Historic Pub Gains a New Identity as a Family Home
Smart tech and thoughtful design have brought this 500-year-old property up to date while respecting its ancient bones
By the time Ed Powell of My Planning Drawings was asked to transform this 500-year-old pub into a comfortable family home, it had already been empty for five years. The building was dilapidated, but despite its age and rich history – it had been used by smugglers who, drawn to its out-of-the-way location, hid their contraband alcohol in its cellar – it was not listed.
Ed was therefore free to completely modernise it, using Houzz Pro software to keep his clients looped in at every stage of the project.
Ed was therefore free to completely modernise it, using Houzz Pro software to keep his clients looped in at every stage of the project.
Once Ed and his team began to strip the building back, they discovered numerous challenges.
“There was a lot of rot in the floor joists, which we weren’t expecting,” he says. “In fact, every wooden element in the building was rotten. We took the roof off and took out all the windows. We ended up taking out the entire upper floor and completely rebuilding the whole thing.”
Underfloor heating was also installed, just seen here, so there are no radiators in the property.
Find architects and building designers in your area on Houzz.
“There was a lot of rot in the floor joists, which we weren’t expecting,” he says. “In fact, every wooden element in the building was rotten. We took the roof off and took out all the windows. We ended up taking out the entire upper floor and completely rebuilding the whole thing.”
Underfloor heating was also installed, just seen here, so there are no radiators in the property.
Find architects and building designers in your area on Houzz.
The house, shown here after renovations were complete, is 20m long but only 5m wide. “It’s long and narrow, but I didn’t want it to seem like a corridor,” Ed says.
One important decision was to move the stairs to the centre of the house. Previously, the upstairs rooms were served by one long corridor. “I had to divide the area up carefully so it didn’t feel like a dorm,” Ed explains. “Now, the stairs are in the middle with a landing opening off either side.”
Ed was able to share his plans for such radical changes every step of the way with the owners using Houzz Pro software, which was reassuring. “I upload all my models on the dashboard so clients can see them. They love it,” he says, “Houzz Pro is my management system now.”
Ed was able to share his plans for such radical changes every step of the way with the owners using Houzz Pro software, which was reassuring. “I upload all my models on the dashboard so clients can see them. They love it,” he says, “Houzz Pro is my management system now.”
The combination of glass, oak and iron found on the staircase crops up throughout the house. “That mix of earthy materials sitting with glass and metal were central to the design, teaming a rustic farmhouse feel with something more contemporary,” Ed says.
The original brick and flint walls have been left exposed in much of the ground floor, and this raw look has been complemented with industrial-style touches.
Ed used reclaimed scaffolding boards to wrap around the tower unit at the far end of the kitchen, for example, and also fitted them on the end of the island, seen here, and along its seating side.
The island measures 3m long and has an Indian granite worktop. The worktop on the side units is quartz.
Ed used reclaimed scaffolding boards to wrap around the tower unit at the far end of the kitchen, for example, and also fitted them on the end of the island, seen here, and along its seating side.
The island measures 3m long and has an Indian granite worktop. The worktop on the side units is quartz.
Ed spent lots of time getting the lighting downstairs just right. “All the lights are ceiling plaster recessed, which creates sharp edges against recessed holes,” he says. “It’s a clean, very effective look.”
Pendant lights, Jim Lawrence.
Pendant lights, Jim Lawrence.
To divide the large living room from the kitchen and dining space, Ed designed a sliding barn door made from old scaffolding boards to separate the two parts of the ground floor.
He also incorporated ‘reveals’ around the house to show the fabric of the building. In the living room, a section of the original brick and flint wall has been left uncovered and is carefully lit with LED lighting, so it looks almost like a picture.
Ceiling light, Dwell.
He also incorporated ‘reveals’ around the house to show the fabric of the building. In the living room, a section of the original brick and flint wall has been left uncovered and is carefully lit with LED lighting, so it looks almost like a picture.
Ceiling light, Dwell.
A huge U-shaped sofa in the living room can accommodate the whole family comfortably and fits the space perfectly.
The flooring is porcelain tiles with a wood effect. “It works well with the underfloor heating,” Ed says.
As well as being a historical property, this is now a smart home, with all the sensor-operated lights, automated blinds, TVs, speakers and thermostats on a network that’s hard-wired into the building. It’s operated via an app anywhere with internet connection.
Sofa, Camerich.
The flooring is porcelain tiles with a wood effect. “It works well with the underfloor heating,” Ed says.
As well as being a historical property, this is now a smart home, with all the sensor-operated lights, automated blinds, TVs, speakers and thermostats on a network that’s hard-wired into the building. It’s operated via an app anywhere with internet connection.
Sofa, Camerich.
Armchairs and an office desk zone the far end of the large living room as somewhere to work or read. The rustic-industrial look continues here, with a shelving unit made from iron and scaffolding boards. The leather chairs have arms made from scaffolding poles, too.
Shelving unit, Barker & Stonehouse. Leather armchairs, Cult Furniture.
Shelving unit, Barker & Stonehouse. Leather armchairs, Cult Furniture.
For another injection of contemporary design, Ed fitted a couple of frameless picture windows in the house. There’s one in the master bedroom (see the main bedroom photo) and this one on the landing.
“The whole of the rear wall is flint with brick infill sections around the windows,” he says. “The window is bonded directly onto the brick walls. The contrast between traditional brick and contemporary glass is exciting. It’s a meeting with no boundary.”
This landing window was made bespoke because of its large size. It measures 1.5m wide and stretches almost floor to ceiling. “Fitting it was technically quite tricky – it’s a heavy piece,” Ed says. “The builders added a wooden plinth in the brickwork to support it.”
“The whole of the rear wall is flint with brick infill sections around the windows,” he says. “The window is bonded directly onto the brick walls. The contrast between traditional brick and contemporary glass is exciting. It’s a meeting with no boundary.”
This landing window was made bespoke because of its large size. It measures 1.5m wide and stretches almost floor to ceiling. “Fitting it was technically quite tricky – it’s a heavy piece,” Ed says. “The builders added a wooden plinth in the brickwork to support it.”
One of the girls living here loves sparkly things, so Ed used split-face tiles, which have a sparkle to them, as a feature wall behind her bed. Speakers looking like pendant lights hang from the ceiling.
In the couple’s bedroom, the vaulted ceiling with new roof trusses gives a sense of space. There are long views of the garden and fields beyond through the frameless picture window.
“The house is on high ground and you can see all the way to Canary Wharf [in east London],” Ed says. The integrated electric window blinds run off the smart home system.
Wicker pendant light, Maisons du Monde.
“The house is on high ground and you can see all the way to Canary Wharf [in east London],” Ed says. The integrated electric window blinds run off the smart home system.
Wicker pendant light, Maisons du Monde.
In the couple’s en suite, there’s a freestanding Japanese soaking bath. Ed had the vanity unit made bespoke and the shower hangs off the roof joist, with all the plumbing work hidden. “It’s a little quirky detail,” he says.
And it’s Ed’s attention to details like this that have given the home so much character.
Japanese soaking bath, Lusso Stone.
Tell us…
What appeals to you most about Ed’s conversion of this historic pub? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
And it’s Ed’s attention to details like this that have given the home so much character.
Japanese soaking bath, Lusso Stone.
Tell us…
What appeals to you most about Ed’s conversion of this historic pub? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Who lives here? A family with three children
Location Near Sevenoaks, Kent
Property A 500-year-old former pub
Size Six bedrooms (one converted into a dressing room) and two bathrooms
Project year 2020
Designer Ed Powell of My Planning Drawings
Photos by Ed Powell
The building was in a poor state when Ed was called in to redesign it. “The pub had been a popular hangout for Formula 1 drivers in the 1970s because it’s near Brands Hatch. They used to come and stay here after the Grand Prix and have parties,” he says. “Then it was a walkers’ pub, but it didn’t get much traffic, as it’s in a very rural location. It had been on sale as a going concern, but no one wanted to run it.”
The bar had been ripped out already, but it still looked like a pub, complete with fibreglass fake beams on the ceiling. “We couldn’t see the extent of the problems because the interior was covered in orange wood panelling,” Ed recalls.
He was keen to make the house run efficiently and feel truly comfortable for the family who bought it, while also celebrating its ancient fabric by exposing the brick and flint walls where possible. “We wanted to show the building beneath,” he says.