Open House - A minimalist marvel

Many years ago, I was unlucky enough to work in Richmond-upon-Thames. To clarify my use of unlucky, I should explain that I was badly mis-sold a job with one of those ‘don’t I sound important?’ type of titles, which was bestowed upon me by a merciless control freak. Add to that the temptation of numerous retail outlets selling everything from brushed stainless steel ‘things for the kitchen’ to Gucci loafers, and my generous salary also started to diminish exponentially. 

Regardless of the private hell into which I am attempting to drag you in lieu of costly therapy, I did find myself falling hopelessly in love with the impeccably stylish suburban Mayfair that is Richmond. Were I the ambitious sort, I’d put a residence in the area on the top of my list, but escalating house prices seem to have eternally doomed me to more modest addresses... However, being at the coalface of commerce, deep in the heart of the City of London, Brett Ray and his partner are made of sterner stuff and have created an eye-catching contemporary home just off the Kew Road.

A period property...

This was Brett’s second property, and having previously owned a flat, he knew exactly what he was looking for. “The house itself was exactly what I was after – a period property with a large garden and off street parking, in close proximity to Richmond town centre and in general good condition,” he says. “However, it wasn’t exactly how I had envisioned it. Whilst the previous occupants retained more interior walls and a fussy décor, I could instantly see that there was great potential given the size of the rooms and the height of the ceilings.”

Despite a lack of previous experience, Brett had an ambitious plan for the property; a total redevelopment that went a lot further than mere decoration. On top of this, and despite a hectic working life, he set himself an equally ambitious schedule for the plan. “We allotted 12 months for the project, during which several walls were removed as well as the staircase, floors were lifted and re-laid, each wall was re-plastered, new back doors were made and fitted, bathrooms put in and, of course, a new bespoke kitchen built. Literally everything in the house was renovated or replaced. Even the garden was landscaped,” says Brett, who sensibly moved to a more comfortable refuge during the building work.

A minimalist feel...

Throughout the interior, there is a distinctly masculine style to the décor, with structured and unadorned furniture, strokes of bold colour as accents, and a playful lighting scheme dominated by the ubiquitous low voltage dichroics, but accented with feature fittings such as the impressive light above the dining table.

“I wanted to create a minimalist, contemporary feel to the house – I really like walnut, so my plan was to make this the main material to feature in the ground floor,” says Brett. “We wanted a fuss free, modern but practical living area, plus I like open plan properties, so I tried as best I could to incorporate this idea in the floor plan of the main living area.”

Despite keeping to schedule, Brett soon learnt the old adage that when it comes to builders you can have good, on time, or cheap – pick two, as you’ll never get all three. “I think I can honestly say that the only things that were delivered on time were the bathrooms,” he says. “The most memorable delay was probably the wait I had on the walnut and glass balustrade – the long walnut beams for the staircase came from Canada, which took ages. I also had quite a wait on the finish of my handmade kitchen, which again set the deadline back further. On the plus side, I did have the best painter out there, my grandfather, so he was able to always keep an eye on my interests.” The project ended up taking a year, from August to August, exactly as planned – though he set out with only a vision of perfection, and wanted to achieve that regardless of cost. 

The execution of the redevelopment has made the most of the smaller rooms associated with properties of this type, especially on the first floor. Use of mirrors, including the striking black mirrors in the master bedroom, combined with an overall lack of clutter and extensive use of white to cream walls maximise the sense of space, whilst the open plan ground floor living space and ‘will o’ the wisp’ balustrade makes the whole property feel much bigger than it actually is. I ask Brett to highlight some of the features of which he is most proud.

Favourite features...

“My favourite aspect of the property is most probably the period appearance of the exterior,” says Brett. “Internally, I am really pleased with the walnut and glass staircase. In my opinion, it’s what makes the downstairs and is the stand out feature of the house. However, I mustn’t forget the garden. I am very lucky to have such a large garden and for me it is like an extension to the house. Also, being south facing means that I’m able to enjoy long sunny days in it. The surround sound Bose Lifestyle system is another favourite technical feature of mine, as it means I can enjoy listening to music whilst relaxing in the bath, or sitting in the garden, or preparing food in the kitchen.”

Having both the funds and determination to see his plan through, I am interested to see if the benefit of hindsight would have seen him do anything differently. “I think the only thing I would change would be very minor – such as to add a waste disposal unit to the kitchen,” he says. “I was extremely fussy during the refurbishment so I did make several changes as I went along, including having the walls modified and floors taken up again, after being laid, just so I could change the radiators.”

Despite all the hard work, the couple are now looking to move further out from London and the property is therefore up for sale. Interested parties will be pleased to hear that the property is on the market for £1.1million with Hamptons International’s Richmond Office who can be reached on 020 8940 2772.

Get the look

• Use materials like colours, linking spaces together
• Choose masculine structured furniture
• Don’t hide your gadgets
• Use busy retro wallpapers to add contrast – like the lining of an Oswald Boatang suit
• Celebrate a period exterior, but don’t be scared to move right up to date on the interior

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