'Our home feels so magical at Christmas'

After a whirlwind move and a lot of hard work, Rachael and Paul Page have filled their beautiful Edwardian property with warmth, colour and sparkle

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Despite their best efforts, Rachael and Paul Page's first Christmas in their new home didn't go as they'd hoped.

'We planned to spend Christmas with family but, because of last-minute Covid restrictions, we ended up on our own instead,' Rachael explains. 'Our house was very bare as we had no furniture, but we did manage to put a little tree up in the living room for some seasonal cheer.'

Before moving in, the couple lived in a flat, and were looking for a home that was more family friendly. 'We used to stroll down this street every day, but the houses were way out of our price range,' she says. That was, until they spotted this property for sale. It was more affordable as it had a small garden and it needed renovation work, but that didn't bother Rachael and Paul. 'We had our offer accepted when we were at Gatwick airport, so our holiday was a whirlwind of phone calls to our mortgage company and solicitors,' remembers Rachel. They moved in a month before Christmas. 'We had 48 hours to pack up our lives and move. It was crazy!' she laughs.

TIME TO TRANSFORM