Location: Though the address is technically on the bustling Brixton Road, the house is set back as a refuge from the action. “When you come off the street, which is really busy and hectic and polluted, and there’s this very quiet, high-walled, green garden out the back, it really does feel like a little oasis,” Rosie says.
The before: Prior to the renovation, the kitchen and living room were combined in a cramped, gloomy box. With just a single barred window, the area was so dark that Rosie needed to keep all the lights on during the day. The finishes were also rather cheap.
The inspiration: “The building itself is Victorian, but because it’s a basement flat, there are no original features—no cornicing, no historical fireplaces. If I had had those things, I probably would’ve gone for a more classical look, but I thought it would be quite nice to go for something that had echoes of modernism. I wanted it to have a slight midcentury feel, but also be quite contemporary.”
Square footage: 4 square meters (approximately 43 square feet)
Budget: £70,000 (approximately $89,700)
A smattering of artwork hangs above Rosie’s dining table. She isn’t embarrassed to confess that the California image is just the picture that came in the IKEA frame.
Main ingredients
Cabinetry: Pluck Custom Birch Plywood Cabinets with Ruskin Blossom Laminate and London Plane Veneer Fronts and Pill-Shaped Recessed Handles. “I went for the pink, which is obviously an incredible millennial cliché, but it is really lovely, soft, and easy to live with,” Rosie admits. “The wooden-fronted ones are London Plane, which is a native tree that’s found all over the city. They have a very beautiful lace grain.”
Countertops: White Corian. “I was obsessed with having really bright things because my last kitchen