13 November 2017

Before and After De Beauvoir Road Refurbishment

Number 78 De Beauvoir Road, built circa 1840, has survived two world wars and been called home by tenants including, most recently, Charles Dickens’ great great granddaughter, sculptor Sophie Dickens.

This year, a new lease of life was injected into the Grade II listed property after a five-month refurbishment modernised and freshened up its spacious interior, brightened up its exterior, and smartened up its rambling back garden.

Accompanying before and after images capture the contrast between the beginning and end of the project and demonstrate how the house was in its former life, compared with its completed new look.

Work was carried out to a high spec by Carville Construction Ltd whose brief was to update the home while respecting its heritage features.

The Benyon Estate team handpicked the fittings and colour palette for the home’s new look, while Estate Director Edward Benyon’s wife Jenny, a passionate gardener, set about redesigning the gardens.

Unblemished ivory walls and pale grey skirting boards replace the deep red walls in the living room, accentuating the antique fireplace.

Light floods into the kitchen through an elongated sash window and the space has been enhanced with new units and extra in-built storage cupboards. The pale grey trim extends to the shutters and double doors which shut it off from the living room, with new vinyl flooring.

Pale grey carpets have been laid, and fitted wardrobes installed, in the bedroom and thick two-toned carpet has been laid throughout the staircase over freshly painted white floorboards.
The bathroom has been redesigned and fitted with contemporary fixtures, and stylish tiles replace an old-fashioned vinyl floor.

The refurbishment has made the front of the property clean and welcoming: woodchip replaces a patch of soil, making it easier for tenants to maintain, and the walkway leading up to entrance has been re-paved. A deep clean of the steps leading up to the front door, which has been repainted midnight blue, has brightened up the exterior.

Perhaps the biggest transformation of all has taken place in the back garden: a freshly turfed lawn studded with stepping stones carpets the majority of the land which now benefits from angular boarders with choice shrubs and flowers. And tenants can now enjoy a patio which has been built at the rear of the garden and catches the evening sunshine.