STROKE of GENIUS

Updated by its owners, designer Emily Sutton and her husband Jamie, this terrace was the ideal canvas for their creativity

- VIVIENNE AYERS

The omens weren't promising when Emily Sutton first went to view the three-storey Victorian terrace she now calls home. ‘Another house we were trying to buy had just fallen through and the estate agent told me about a property that wasn’t yet on the market,’ she says. ‘It was absolutely pouring with rain and I was in such a rush to see it, I got a speeding ticket! But I walked into the house and I just loved it, even on a dreary day. It had amazing bones and it had character, with its high ceilings, shutters and bay windows.’

The house was, however, definitely in need of some TLC. Fortunately, Emily and her husband, Jamie, had tackled two projects previously. ‘We had very much caught the bug. I don’t think we were expecting such a big project, but it worked out better that we were able to put our stamp on it.’