Home Landscape Design AFTER THE FLOOD

AFTER THE FLOOD


Tori and GrcgSmallwood werent actively house hunting when they spotted their Edwardian home in I l.ir - iip.ik Yorkshire At first. Greg didnt wan: to even view the property because he didnt like the look of it from the outside, says 1 ori but I dragged him in and we fell in love with it.
It was the layout and position of the property that captured the couples imagination. There was an awful lot of potential herein terms of location, space and the south - facing garden. recalls Tori. Itfclt like a family house its big but compact.
Everything was on track foran easy transfel but then, between exchange anci compk - tion. disaster struck. A water tank in the attic had burst and the empty house was completely flooded. "Everything was destroyed. says Tori. The parquet floor in the hall was ruined, the Aga rusted and the kitchen units fell off the wall and landed on it. It was just a mess from top to bottom. We had to rent for a year while we sorted it out. which wasnt really part of the plan."
Once they were over the initial shock, the family looked on the bright side and saw a chance to go back to basics, creating their ideal home from scratch. It gave us a clean sheet, although it put us under a lot of financial pressure. admits Tori. But theres nothing more exciting than seeing how you can change a house and make it better.
It took a month or two to just dry it out. she continues.The bill fordehumidifiers was astronomical, and the ceilings, plumbing and wiring were all replaced. Then the priority was to make it feel like ours."

AFTER THE FLOOD


Tori incorporated outbuildings to extend the family room and added a glazed roof to let in light. The kitchen was originally a formal drawing room. she says, but we wanted a space that linked directly to the garden, so we replaced the bay windows with large French windows and did the same in the sitting room. too. We also created a utility area with a downstairs cloakroom to give us space for coats and shoes."
Taking her cue from the light - filled rooms. Tori felt free to move away from safe neutrals. I wanted to be brave, introduce more colour and enjoy it. she says. Colour is fantastic, but its also risky because it docs date and you can go off it. so there has to be a balance. Ive gone for splashes of colour, especially with the childrens areas.
because its not a showhomc - its a relaxed, warm - looking house. Texture also plays a big role. I love fabrics that are sumptuous and inviting." explains Tori. I also like prints and have included them in the childrens rooms. My style is quite eclectic, so I tend to mix things up and swap them around a lot. I dont like having everything matching I prefer to throw things together randomly."
Despite their unpromising start. Tori and Greg admit that they wouldnt change a thing. Our home has turned out better than wccould have imagined, says Tori. It was a pretty hideous time, but in some ways the flood was a blessing in disguise, because we ended up getting the house of our dreams out of it. We love living here.
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