We went for a MINI EXTENSION'

By stealing space from the side return, Philippa has opened up and transformed this once dark and dated galley kitchen

- CAROLINE FOSTER, LISA FAZZANI

When we first viewed the house it was like walking into a time warp,’ says Philippa. ‘It had last been sold in 1929 and all the rooms looked like they hadn’t been touched since then, particularly the kitchen, with its old fashioned scullery, Belfast sink and cast iron stove built into the chimney breast.

We were thrilled to discover such a unique find and moved into a caravan on my parents’ land while it was being renovated. The old kitchen consisted of a series of dark rooms that looked out onto a side return. There was a stench of mould, the plaster was falling off the walls and it was an unusable space. The plan was to create a large open-plan kitchen with space for a seating area looking out over the garden. We started by gutting the whole interior and removing the old chimney breast to turn the separate rooms into one big space. Sadly, the old cast iron stove literally disintegrated as we attempted to move it.