Serendipity and opportunity played their part when Jacquie and Ian O’Donnell viewed this former Georgian warehouse in a quiet Islington street five years ago. The couple originally intended to buy the house next door because it had the space required for themselves and their two adult children, who are regular visitors.
‘We’d dismissed two-bedroom properties when we were searching,’ Jacquie explains. ‘Nevertheless, once we discovered this one was also on the market, curiosity got the better of us, and we went to see it. It was to prove a valuable lesson in not setting strict parameters...’
The three-storey house, dating back to 1780, was less expensive than the one they’d originally planned to buy because of its lack of bedrooms and awkward, boxy layout – but the couple only had to look up to find a solution.
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‘A full-sized roof terrace stretched across the top of the house, and we realised that if we were to build upwards to create an extra floor – sacrificing one area of the flat roof to do so – we would immediately have everything we required: three bedrooms, more space and brilliant views,’ Jacquie says. ‘It was a lightbulb moment!’
While an architect was engaged to design the core structure, the couple already had a clear vision of the home they intended to create. ‘Pared-back design and attention to detail were our watchwords,’ Jacquie explains, ‘but our practical nature also took a lead.’
She knew an uncluttered flow couldn’t be achieved without clever storage, and that the materials they chose would need to be robust as well as beautiful to withstand busy family life.
The family rented a flat in north London while the most disruptive part of the renovation took place. Altogether, the project lasted almost two and a half years – ‘the pandemic didn’t help!’ – but eventually, the home they had imagined was a reality.
It’s perhaps the sense of space and light that the new layout created that was the biggest change. This was enhanced by the extensive use of glass and reflective surfaces, most notably in the kitchen, where the soaring glass ceiling emphasises this home’s extra height.
Underpinning all of this change is a restrained palette that combines wood, metallics, glass, leather and stone to sleek effect. ‘I like to think all of this treats the eye,’ Jacquie reflects. ‘We’ve created a home that not only works for our own family, but is great for entertaining, whether on the ground floor or up on the roof terrace. I’m delighted that we (quite literally) thought outside of the box when it came to buying this house.’
