Natural Selection

A stylish grey-and-taupe colour scheme with hints of Art Deco complete the remodelled layout of Lynsey and Warren Evans elegant home

- Jane Crittenden

Interior designer Lynsey Evans felt so inspired by this Sussex Forties house that she began scribbling ideas for a new layout straight after her first visit. ‘The property was a good size but it had a strange layout, resulting in seven bedrooms and a dark, cramped ground floor,’ says Lynsey. ‘Reconfiguring the floor plan has given us all the space we could possibly need as a family.’

Lynsey lives here with her husband, Warren, and their two children, Ellie, 20, and Charlie, 18. The purchase came about after the couple, who run a property letting business, decided to move back to Hove after eight years living in a nearby village. ‘We were about to start a two-storey extension on our old house and I got cold feet,’ says Lynsey. ‘Over time, we’d realised that ultimately we’re town people and we missed being by the sea.’

Two houses fell through before the pair found this one, perched high on a hill with sea views. ‘We came around the corner and saw the sea along the horizon and I was blown away,’ says Lynsey. ‘It had plenty of space for entertaining and we loved the big garden, too.’