Victoria and Tim Burton squeezed in an extra bedroom and knocked through an open-plan living space to turn this terrace into their dream home
CHARMING TERRACE RENO
My story
‘Tim and I were so certain we wanted this house that we chased the estate agent down the street after our viewing! We saw them driving off and we frantically flagged them down and put in an offer on the spot.
This Victorian terrace had been converted into a shop, then into offices during the 1980s, then back into a house again. Over time, many of the original period features had been removed, and the layout had been carved up into a series of box rooms.
We hired builders to knock through the kitchen and breakfast room to create an open-plan space, move the downstairs WC under the stairs and create a mini laundry room upstairs to free up space. Our new kitchen area now overlooks the dining table, and we can open the doors out onto the garden. It’s a social area for when friends or family visit.
When it came to decorating, I found a lot of my furniture in junk shops and upcycled it. I love vintage interiors and have been collecting antique bits for years. My parents and grandparents have given me lots of things too. This house reminds me of the house I grew up in because it’s filled with pieces that hold a lot of childhood memories.
I’ve made sure that we use every inch of this house. I’m forever switching things up so we can all enjoy the space and relax in here. I feel so happy when I walk through the front door.’
Welcome to my home
A BIT ABOUT ME
I’m Victoria Burton, 35, a stylist and content creator at @shelley_cottage. I live here with my husband Tim, 36, a global trainer, and our children Eva, two, and Tilly, one, plus our cats Hank and Penny, and Melly the dog.
WHERE I LIVE
A three-bed Victorian end-of-terrace on the outskirts of Brighton in East Sussex. We moved here in September 2016.
WHAT I WANTED TO CHANGE
The downstairs layout felt awkward, and the garden was disconnected from the rest of the house. Upstairs, there was a large bathroom and two bedrooms, so we needed to reconfigure the rooms to make the most of the space.
HOW I MADE IT MY OWN
During lockdown, I started decorating the house properly. Both of my parents are creative people and when I was a child they renovated our family home from scratch. They inspired me to tackle
