House Beautiful | I've created a home from home

Reminders of her family roots are central to the eclectic look of Lindsay Mattinson's south London flatProperty detailsType of house: Two bedroom split-level flatWhat I bought it for: £142,000What I spent doing it up: £50,000What it's worth now: £360,000A neutral colour scheme throughout provides a cool backdrop so that Lindsay's prized possessions, like the tuba on the kitchen wall, can take pride of place."Although I love my home now, when I first saw it six years ago I was less than enthusiastic. All the rooms were cramped and dark and the bedrooms downstairs were so damp that water was literally running down the walls. It was the first property I'd seen and I hated it. The thought of anyone actually living here was awful. I decided to carry on house-hunting, but eventually the size of the space and its location overlooking London's Clapham Common were enough to draw me back.The flat is on the ground and lower ground floors of a corner property. The Victorian building was originally an off-licence but had been converted into flats in the 1980s. As an architect, I could see the place had lots of potential and it just didn't make sense to buy a tiny property when I could buy this one. I'm now firmly convinced that I couldn't have found anything better.I was 29 at the time and single, so, with nowhere else to live while I did the work, I just moved in and tried to ignore the squalor as I slowly did bits and pieces as and when I could find the money. I started by making a careful plan of what I wanted to do with each of the rooms and then got stuck into the work, ripping up carpets, tearing out light fittings and repainting.The biggest change I wanted to make was to open up the kitchen and living room by removing the dividing wall between them. I got out a crowbar and made a start, but I couldn't do it on my own. Eventually my dad came over from Zimbabwe, where I'm originally from, for four weeks to help. Having built most of the houses we lived in when I was growing up, he has great construction skills. We quickly discovered the dividing wall was plasterboard, with the original wattle and horsehair inside. Rather than rip out the existing timbers in the wall and throw them away, we decided to make a feature of them. So we cleaned them up, bolted them together and reused them as supports.Once we'd introduced the timber into the space, I decided that the floor should be timber, too, and that some wooden furniture would look great. The simple units in the kitchen came about as a result of what I'd chosen for the floor. It all had a knock-on effect.It was at this point that my future husband Guy, 35, appeared on the scene. Guy and I went to nursery school together in Zimbabwe and then lost touch. Our parents had remained friends over the years, though, and when both he and I ended up living in south London they suggested we meet up.Guy moved into the flat in 2002. He's an architect, too, so was soon drawn into the renovation process. I asked him to create the wall of built-in cube shelving that lines one wall of the living area. As he often says jokingly, "It was a test of our relationship!"When it came to decorating, I wanted to emphasise the amount of light and provide a blank canvas for my collection of African artefacts and my mother's vibrant paintings of home, so I opted for basic white emulsion for the walls throughout the flat. We furnished it with a mix of 1950s wooden furniture, like the easy chairs from a retro shop, and clean, modern pieces like the glass dining table, which we chose for its "barely-there" look. The living space is very flexible, which makes it prefect for socialising. For our engagement party we took out all the furniture and had a fantastic time with our 75 guests. I also had my 30th birthday party here and got 25 people round a long table.Downstairs the two-bedroom layout has remained the same, although the bathroom has been extended. Originally it was just a tiny shower room, no bigger than a cupboard. It had a shower, a small basin and loo. It was terribly dark, damp and horrid, so I came up with the idea of extending it into a small courtyard area at the back.The damp problem proved pretty persistent and tackling it was one of the low points of the work. We knew we could fix it, but we had to lay a damp course three times to get rid of it for good. It's fine now, but at the time it was like living on a building site and it stopped us getting on with the decorating. Now, at last, we have a proper bathroom with a bath, a shower and a nice big basin.I'm very happy with the way the house has turned out. It feels like a home, and I'm pleased we've created a space for the things that remind me of my family and roots.Having mum's artwork on display makes it very personal. It's an adaptable home, and with baby on the way, that's very important to us. We're now busy trying to shuffle everything around to make space for a nursery."Stainless-steel utensils and accessories tie in with the household appliances and keep surfaces clutter free.When the wall between the kitchen and living room was removed, original timbers were exposed. Too good to rip out, they were used as a frame for the kitchen / dining area.The original timber beams were sanded then varnished to enhance the warm colour and attractive grain.Lindsay's philosophy is to spend money where it counts. The units were an economical buy from Kitchens Direct, while the cooker was from Smeg and the dishwasher was from Siemens. the glass dining table and leather chairs came from the Chair Company.Lindsay's Inside StoryWater played a huge part in Lindsay's renovation'We'd been away one weekend and came back to find the house had been flooded from the flat upstairs. I'd only just finished decorating and carpeting the spare room downstairs. typically, the water went straight through the floor and into that room. It was a big insurance job and at the time it felt like an enormous setback.''One of the best moments was finishing the bathroom - it meant I could finally have bath. It's such a comfortable, tranquil and calming space - I can happily spend an hour lying in the bathtub. Seeing it finished and looking exactly how I'd planned it in my head was a real high point of the project.'Paintings by Lindsay's mother, Leslie Johnson, adorn the walls throughout the flat. The two large pictures here show workers sorting coffee beans on the farm that Lindsay grew up on in Africa.Carvings that Lindsay has collected on her travels over the years are displayed to stunning effect in a grid of storage shelves. Many of the pieces are from Zimbabwe to remind her of home.A leather sofa and low coffee table from BoConcept add to the sophisticated feel of the living area.A major feature of the room is the stylish cube shelving that runs along much of one wall. It was the work of Lindsay's husband Guy.Lindsay's most treasured possessions'I've travelled through Africa and Southeast Asia and brought back lots of things from my travels that are special to me. I have baskets from Africa for sorting coffee beans, carvings from Zimbabwe and sculptures from the Congo. Sometimes when we've needed more space in the flat, guy has suggested we sell some of it off. I always go into an utter frenzy at the thought of parting with them.'Behind the bed, the insulating partition wall is covered in silk wallpaper from Vescom.The basin, bath and taps are from Bathstore.com. The tiles came from World's End Tiles.Tip: Clever TricksMake open-plan rooms work:Open plan living spaces need careful planning. Don't be daunted by the size of the space - the trick is to create zones within it so that the different parts feel distinct. Lindsay has kept her living area separate from her kitchen by retaining the timber supports between them, and placing a large rug in the seating area to define the space.Insulate walls to block noise:Flats can be noisy places to live in. Lindsay and Guy's bedroom wall backs on to the kitchen of a neighbouring flat. Their solution was to build the wall on the inside and fill it with extra sound insulation. This also gave them the opportunity to create a feature headboard, covered in silk wallpaper, with a smart display slot running along it.