Family Heirlooms Enliven Enliven our Retro Home

Feature Stephanie Smith Photos Colin Poole Styling Charlotte Coward-Williams

‘Our kitchen was inspired by this beautiful 1930s kitchenette (pictured behind table and chairs), which we use as a baking station,’ says Kate. ‘It was from a house clearance and we loved it for its curved sides which give it a lovely, retro feel.’ Adam mirrored the look on the kitchen cupboards by adding curved pelmets and corners to the units which came from Howdens

Damp, dark and desperately in need of updating, home was transformed by clever tricks and stunning vintage finds

Kitchen

Extending the back room allowed Kate to turn her kitchen into a warm family area for cooking, eating and relaxing and make space for her treasured collection of Ercol furniture. ‘A quarter of the space in here is actually our utility room but I had to fight Adam and the builder on this, because they both said a big, open space with a huge breakfast bar would look so much better. I told them it would just be covered in laundry, so they relented!’

Welcome to my home

A bit about me

I’m Kate Beavis, a vintage blogger and writer of Style Your Modern Vintage Home, and I’m married to Adam, a carpenter. We have two children, Herbie, 7, and Kitty, 5.

Where i live

Our home is a four-bedroom 1920s house in Bedfordshire. We’ve lived here since 2011.

What i wanted to change

We wanted to make better use of the space while retaining the features which made us fall in love with it.

How i made it my own

Reconfiguring and freshening up the interior gave us the space and backdrop to show off our vintage and retro treasures.