OUR STUDIO RENOVATION
"The longer the road,
the greater the destination"
We have recently moved our design studio to the heart of the Lake District, Windermere.
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We took on the refurbishment of an old Fish and Chip shop with the intent to upcycle it into a beautiful workspace for us to be creative in. Little did we know that the project would take over our lives for the next 8 months!
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The building has a really interesting history, being built as the original ticket office for Windermere train station, however, the train line couldn't be built next to the ticket office due to national park restrictions. Therefore the building was repurposed. It has had a long life and various businesses within it, from cafes and chippys, to shops and furniture makers. Our aim was to rejuvenate its original character and features.
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After completely gutting the interior and refinishing the exterior, we feel like we have transformed this old building and brought it back to life.
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Look through the images of the transformation below, come on our 8 month long journey with us and see what two people can do with a bit of vision, a lot of passion and of course a sausage dog.
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Pop in for a coffee anytime!
e had no idea it would take us 8 months. when we started, but the longer the road, the greater the destination. I think we often look back into the past through rose tinted glasses because a great deal of the renovation was total hell! Yet now we are in and working here, we only have fond memories of our time spent bringing this place back to life.
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OUR LARGEST UPCYCLING PROJECT TO DATE...
e started the renovations of our new studio in
February. A great deal of work was required to get it to the standard we wanted. Due to a tight budget and naive eagerness, we decided to do all the work ourselves.
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We had to remove a lath and plaster ceiling which is possibly one of the messiest jobs on earth! We also had to do a full re-wire, re-plaster, soundproof, insulation and everything in between.
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"We thought it would take 3 weeks... 8 months later..."
e did have some fantastic help along the way. Frank of Frank Holmes Ltd did a fantastic job installing our ceiling. Lincrusta was kind enough to sponsor our shop renovation and gifted us the ceiling so we could show it off to clients in the heart of the Lake District.
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Putting up the extremely heavy plaster cornice was quite a job! Taking all three of us to hold it up to the ceiling while we frantically screwed it into position.
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The final effect was well worth all of the effort though, it is simply the highlight of the space.
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nce all of the messy work was out of the way we could finally get started on adding our own stamp to the building. We spent days searching auctions, ebay and chairty shops for the light fittings, glass wall and shelving that you see in our shop. 80% of what we used in the shop was recycled or envirnometally friendy, from the plasterboard to the insulation to the paint.
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We went with dark tones that would compliment our photography and used brass to add luxurious highlights. Lighting is so important in order to achieve a great paint finish, which is why we have enough lights to illuminate a small football pitch.
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The glass box is the sanding room/dirty work area, keeping everything contained yet still keeping the space open and inviting. Ollie painted a floor to ceiling mural to create a contrast between our dark and moody space and our funky mid-centuary style.
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BE BOLD
BE BESPOKE
DROP IN FOR A COFFEE
