on the up & up

With clever use of space and light, interior designer Mark Lewis has grown his home to become a bigger and better version of itself

- Jenny Tucker

all good things come to those who wait. And for this family, who moved into their groundfloor flat nearly 10 years ago, the evolution of their ultimate home had just started. ‘Originally, we’d planned to take on an element of renovation,’ says owner Mark Lewis. ‘We turned a bathroom into a bedroom and later added a small extension to the side yard. But then, after we’d been here five years, the upstairs flat came on the market. We’ve always felt happy in this area and the idea of more space was appealing, so it seemed logical to buy it. The intention was to knock the two properties into one – but that didn’t happen immediately. We had to wait until we had enough cash behind us.’