Surrey Private Residence

Set on around 1.77 acres of private estate land, this late-Victorian Surrey house comes in at just under 500 square metres across three floors. The last renovation, twenty years earlier, had not been carried out to a high standard, and the property had then sat empty for three years, leaving damp and other issues to compound. Before any interior decisions could be made, the electrics, plumbing and building fabric all had to be brought back to a usable standard.

The clients wanted to retain the existing floor plan, with selective changes to door openings, a new kitchen and reworked bathrooms. The old library became a daughter's bedroom by reusing the original joinery and adjusting the doors. Of the five original bedrooms, one was converted into a shower room so that the master suite gained a proper shower, and most other bedrooms now have their own bathrooms. Two guest toilets sit on the ground floor.

The interior is in Ana Engelhorn's signature "perfectly imperfect" mode: antiques layered with contemporary pieces, the clients' eclectic art collection, and pieces brought back from Africa, all sitting comfortably alongside each other. Colour was chosen freely. Two of the principal paint suppliers were Francesca's Paints in the UK, used for the bolder rooms, and Bauwerk from Germany for a softer, more uneven wash.

Curtains and upholstery were a sizeable element of the scheme. Fabrics came mainly from Holland & Sherry and Designer's Guild, with additional pieces from Susan Deliss and Rose Uniacke. Several existing pieces were reupholstered rather than replaced. Furniture combined items the clients had carried from previous homes with new pieces from Pinch, Brownrigg Interiors and The Odd Chair Company, while bespoke work was undertaken by Rupert Bevan. Lighting was specified throughout, with fittings from Fritz Fryer, Retrouvius, Vaughan and Hector Finch, all coordinated with a trusted lighting supplier so the bolder colour schemes were properly read in the evenings. Bathrooms used Drummonds, Czech & Speake and Porter Bathrooms, with the daughter's bathroom fitted out as a complete refit.

The kitchen was the largest single intervention: the owners are keen cooks and wanted generous cooking and prep space, so the room was overhauled completely. Two outbuildings on the plot were converted into a home gym and a study, keeping the same interior language as the main house. The works were carried out through the first Covid lockdown, and the clients still moved in on schedule.

Interior design: Ana Engelhorn, Ana Engelhorn Interior Design Ltd. Photography: James Balston.