Lifestyle: Caroline Gardner's back-yard paradise
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By Clare Nolan
Words GABI TUBBS
PUBLISHED: 18:01 EST, 24 August 2013 | UPDATED: 21:34 EST, 24 August 2013
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Sydney or San Francisco? No, Southwest London actually. Renovating a rundown house over 20 years means that Caroline Gardner and her family get to live in their ultimate urban oasis
THE SWIMMING POOL, lined with pale-green glass mosaic tiles, is at the bottom of the garden, surrounded by grasses. The pool was installed by Falcon Pools (falconpools.co.uk). Reed Harris sells similar tiles (reedharris.co.uk). York-stone slabs and iroko decking frame the area
THE HOUSE A 1940s-built, Georgian-style seven-bedroom family home in Barnes, Southwest London. A new second-floor mansard roof accentuates the Georgian feel of the property and houses the ensuite master bedroom
THE GARDEN is oriental style and features feathery tall grasses, including Molinia caerulea 'Karl Foerster' and Anemanthele lessoniana, and late-flowering perennials, such as Verbena bonariensis and Verbascum 'Helen Johnson'. The naturalist planting, designed by Karena Batstone (karenabatstone.com), is broken up with an iroko decking walkway, pebble squares and grass panels
THE FAMILY
Caroline Gardner (above) runs her eponymous stationery company with her husband Angus. They share the house with their children Will, 23, Charlie, 21, Flora, 17, and Sebastian, 13, and black labrador Miller.
It was the garden that I fell for first when we saw the place more than 20 years ago,’ says Caroline. ‘The house had been empty for about six years and was totally neglected, with collapsed ceilings and uninhabitable bathrooms and kitchen, but I saw the potential in the plot, which is just over a third of an acre.
‘We couldn’t really afford it – it was a stretch to buy the house and do it up – so we planned the work in several stages. We lived on the top floor at first and gradually took over the other parts of the house.
‘We survived the first few years with a makeshift kitchen made largely from MDF work surfaces balanced on timber frames and a cooker rescued from a skip. In fact, the pool ended up going in before the new kitchen.
‘My favourite part of the refurb is the double-height extension we added to the side of the house to allow for an airy dining room with doors leading into the garden – it really adds a wow factor.
‘The house has been adapted over the years to suit how we live. Now the children are past playing football and trampolining, I’ve been able to create the serene, natural-style garden I’ve always wanted. I have a preference for modern, classic design and am a believer in minimalism but accept that real life, with four kids and a dog, means that even with plenty of storage there’ll still be a little mess here and there – it’s just part of living.’
carolinegardner.com
A glass-roofed passage - which connects the main sitting and dining rooms and is used as a second living area - is furnished with a rustic French armoire and a modern two-piece suite from the Conran Shop (conranshop.co.uk)
Glazed doors lead from the living room to the garden. The Matthew Hilton Balzac chair and ottoman are from the Conran Shop. The large wooden table and side table were bought at the Clignancourt antique market in Paris. The French House sells similar pieces (thefrenchhouse.co.uk). The cushions and white linen blinds were made by Taylor & Marr (tel: )
The contemporary kitchen's dark-laminate and stainless-steel units are by Boffi (boffi.com), and have been topped with hard-wearing granite and limestone from a local stonemason
‘I am a believer in minimalism but accept that real life, with four children and a dog, means that there’ll be a little mess here and there’
THE DINING AREA The double-height dining room was an intrinsic part of the refurbishment. The table is by Poliform (poliformuk.com) - Caroline customised it by covering it with Neisha Crosland's Anemone wallpaper, topped with several layers of clear varnish (neishacrosland.com). The classic Series 7 chairs are by Arne Jacobsen (from thelollipopshoppe. co.uk). The handmade tableware is by Brickett Davda (brickettdavda.com), and the glasses are by E&M Glass (emglass.co.uk). Caroline embellished the pendant lights, from CTO Lighting (ctolighting.co.uk), with beaded trim. The linen blinds are by Taylor & Marr (tel: ). Caroline added a sandblasted-glass top to her antique French console, over which she hung one of her own paintings
THE COLOUR PALETTE
● THE FLOOR Caroline stained the birch floorboards white throughout the house, before finishing with two coats of Bonakemi Mega Matt floor sealant (bonakemi.uk.com) for an ultra-flat finish.
● THE WALLS All the rooms are painted in soft white tones. Try Paper and Paint’s Off White range (papers-paints.co.uk) or Sanderson’s Dusky White and Birch White Light (sanderson-uk.com) for similar shades.
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