A Cambridge couple found a light, spacious house that reminded them of the Australian lifestyle they missed so much.

After a year spent living and working in Australia, the owners of this detached family home in Cambridge found coming home to their previous terraced home a slightly depressing prospect. Although they loved the house, they found that is seemed very narrow and dark compared to the light, open spaces they had become used to, and with their three children on the verge of becoming teenagers, they decided to look for a bigger house.

Then they spotted a photograph in the local paper of a house that seemed different from anything they had seen before. When they viewed it, the couple knew they had found just what they were looking for. The 1930s house has a two-storey, architect-designed extension at the back, built in 1990. With open-plan living and floor-to-ceiling windows across the back of the house, the spaces were light and airy, with the potential to become a contemporary family home.

Moving in on a wave of excitement, it was only when the family had settled down that they realised the house needed a major refurbishment. Their own furniture didn’t seem to fit and the rooms looked too big and empty, but they didn’t feel confident to tackle the necessary changes.

When Cambridge-based interior designers, Angel + Blume were asked to help with transforming the dated, dull interior, they advised clean lines and a simple, contemporary look.

The open-plan sitting room was the first room to be tackled. Woven fabrics in neutral colours give it a relaxing feel, accented with warm terracotta. The tall windows in three sides and wonderful views onto the garden needed careful thinking about after the original, heavy Roman blinds were removed, so the designers came up with an original mix of eyelet headings and pinch pleats.

The couple were hoping that their budget would run to a new kitchen, but they decided to wait until they could afford their dream kitchen, Meanwhile they plumped for a simple makeover to tide them over. The original units were of very good quality, so they simply changed the worktops, wall tiles and handles and were delighted with how different the kitchen looked with the minimum of upheaval and expense. Next to be tackled was the master bedroom. Vast curtains swept back from the window’s apex, which eliminated the best feature of the room – the light that floods in throughout the day.

Yet, with a simple scheme of off-white paintwork and duck-egg patterned curtains and blinds, accessorised with dark wood furniture and a blue bed throw, Angel + Blume gave the room a wonderfully simple, contemporary look.

The en-suite shower room also needed revamping. Pokey and uncomfortable, the couple and their designers had to think hard aobut now to work round the diffucult plumbing arrangements to get the space necessary. Given a soft blue floor and vanity unit, the stone-look tiles are pepped up with matching mosaics.

The finished house has the practical design and easy-to-live with style that busy family life demands, all with a distinctively Aussie flavour.

Original article featured in East Magazine April 2007. Photography by Spike Powell