Room Tour: A Loft Conversion Gives Two Teens Super-smart Bedrooms
Extending into the attic gave two girls each a bedroom of equal size and style, as well as a bathroom to share
Bedrooms of different proportions can be a recipe for sibling squabbles, but when interior designer Sarah Brown bought a period home with Planning Permission in place for an extension into the loft, a solution was easily attainable. The space was generous enough to create two sizeable bedrooms plus a bathroom for her daughters.
Conscious of the age of the rooms’ occupants, Sarah chose to mix furniture styles. “It could have felt a bit grown-up if it was all old furniture, so I got quite contemporary beds for both of them,” she says.
Blue walls in this bedroom were complemented with a yellow accent hue that’s picked up in the lampshade’s pattern, and Sarah added a blanket to the bed. “It breaks up the whiteness and adds extra pattern and texture,” she says.
Wall light, Pooky. Star Anise lampshade in Pink and Yellow, Rosi de Ruig.
Blue walls in this bedroom were complemented with a yellow accent hue that’s picked up in the lampshade’s pattern, and Sarah added a blanket to the bed. “It breaks up the whiteness and adds extra pattern and texture,” she says.
Wall light, Pooky. Star Anise lampshade in Pink and Yellow, Rosi de Ruig.
Across the landing is the second bedroom. From this position, the girls’ bathroom on the left, and the stairs leading to the floor below is on the right.
Both of the girls’ rooms were given colour schemes that would sit comfortably with the shades in the wallpaper on the landing and staircase walls. “They’re tonally similar, so the flow is good from room to room,” Sarah says. “The wallpaper was the starting point.”
Sarah designed built-in shelving for both rooms. The back of the storage is panelled like the walls, and it’s reeded on the front. “Adding that extra bit of detail just elevates the room,” she says.
Sarah prefers lamps and wall lights for sleeping spaces to create the right atmosphere, and because the rooms have a variety of light sources, the lights are on a circuit, so they can be turned off together from the doorway.
Find carpenters and joiners in your neighbourhood.
Both of the girls’ rooms were given colour schemes that would sit comfortably with the shades in the wallpaper on the landing and staircase walls. “They’re tonally similar, so the flow is good from room to room,” Sarah says. “The wallpaper was the starting point.”
Sarah designed built-in shelving for both rooms. The back of the storage is panelled like the walls, and it’s reeded on the front. “Adding that extra bit of detail just elevates the room,” she says.
Sarah prefers lamps and wall lights for sleeping spaces to create the right atmosphere, and because the rooms have a variety of light sources, the lights are on a circuit, so they can be turned off together from the doorway.
Find carpenters and joiners in your neighbourhood.
Sarah chose beehive-style door knobs with warm metallic detail. The rich blue paint of the doors is echoed on the banister and stair treads.
Door painted in Stiffkey Blue, Farrow & Ball. Door knob, Willow & Stone.
Door painted in Stiffkey Blue, Farrow & Ball. Door knob, Willow & Stone.
The mixed-width panelling in this bedroom is finished in pink with a twist, which Sarah’s daughter requested. “We didn’t want sugary pink,” Sarah says. The yellowy version of the colour looks a little more grown-up.
Walls painted in Jonquil, Edward Bulmer Natural Paint.
Discover how to panel a wall.
Walls painted in Jonquil, Edward Bulmer Natural Paint.
Discover how to panel a wall.
Sarah found a modern-style desk to keep the space feeling young. The legs pick up the yellow featured in the room’s blind (not seen) and add a zingy note against the soft pink walls.
The flooring throughout the loft is a faux natural floorcovering. “I thought sisal might not withstand the battering from teenagers, and this looks the same,” Sarah says.
Nic desk, Habitat. Rug, Anna Cox Cushions.
The flooring throughout the loft is a faux natural floorcovering. “I thought sisal might not withstand the battering from teenagers, and this looks the same,” Sarah says.
Nic desk, Habitat. Rug, Anna Cox Cushions.
The teens’ shared bathroom has a classic white scheme. “Because I went quite crazy with colour in the bedrooms and hall, I wanted to keep it simple in the bathroom,” Sarah says.
She did give the room contemporary twists, however. Black grout looks modern, and the panelling once again features mixed-width boards.
She did give the room contemporary twists, however. Black grout looks modern, and the panelling once again features mixed-width boards.
The room’s floor is finished with hexagonal mosaics that offer contrast in colour and scale to the wall tiles.
In order to accommodate both a shower and bath in this room, Sarah stole a little space from one bedroom. A niche built into the cubicle helps keep shampoo bottles tidy.
Wall and floor tiles, Walls and Floors.
In order to accommodate both a shower and bath in this room, Sarah stole a little space from one bedroom. A niche built into the cubicle helps keep shampoo bottles tidy.
Wall and floor tiles, Walls and Floors.
Victorian-style fittings continue the traditional features of the room. “I threw it off by adding wall lights that are industrial looking, so it didn’t appear old-fashioned,” Sarah says.
Basin and toilet, Aston Matthews. Wall lights, Mullan Lighting.
Basin and toilet, Aston Matthews. Wall lights, Mullan Lighting.
The vast expanse of wall that leads up to the loft conversion deterred Sarah from simply painting it. “I thought about panelling, but I love wallpaper and I love wallpaper in spaces you’re passing through, as you just get a glimpse of it,” she says. “I thought I could go quite bold.”
A wall light in a gold finish illuminates the stairs. “It’s industrial looking, but it adds a little bit of glamour,” Sarah says.
The staircase is finished with the same carpet as in the bedrooms for a seamless look, but laid as a runner on the painted treads. “I liked the idea of seeing colour at the sides,” Sarah says. “I just needed it for cosiness.”
The staircase’s blue finish tones with the petrol blue in the wallpaper, and Sarah used the colour for the skirting boards as well. “There’s no white woodwork,” she says. “It makes it look more dramatic and interesting.”
The new staircase to the loft conversion was designed to replicate the look of the house’s original.
Alhambra wallpaper, Lewis & Wood. Moya wall light, Mullan Lighting. Woodwork painted in Stiffkey Blue, Farrow & Ball.
A wall light in a gold finish illuminates the stairs. “It’s industrial looking, but it adds a little bit of glamour,” Sarah says.
The staircase is finished with the same carpet as in the bedrooms for a seamless look, but laid as a runner on the painted treads. “I liked the idea of seeing colour at the sides,” Sarah says. “I just needed it for cosiness.”
The staircase’s blue finish tones with the petrol blue in the wallpaper, and Sarah used the colour for the skirting boards as well. “There’s no white woodwork,” she says. “It makes it look more dramatic and interesting.”
The new staircase to the loft conversion was designed to replicate the look of the house’s original.
Alhambra wallpaper, Lewis & Wood. Moya wall light, Mullan Lighting. Woodwork painted in Stiffkey Blue, Farrow & Ball.
A typographic print hangs on the landing wall, complete with picture light, to add a modern twist to the traditional pattern.
Dublin picture light, Mullan Lighting. Darling screen print, Print Club London.
Tell us…
What do you like about this loft conversion? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
Dublin picture light, Mullan Lighting. Darling screen print, Print Club London.
Tell us…
What do you like about this loft conversion? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
Who lives here? Sarah and Rory Brown and their teenage daughters
Location Chiswick, London
Property A detached Edwardian house
Room dimensions Around 55 sq m
Interior designer Sarah Brown of Sarah Brown Interiors
Photos by Chris Snook
The new bedrooms created by the loft conversion are roughly equal in size. Both have panelled walls to make them cosy, with this one given a blue painted finish.
Rather than being a uniform size, the boards for the panelling are mixed in width. “It makes it a bit more interesting visually and different from tongue-and-groove,” Sarah says. The shape of the attic rooms meant the boards had to be curved to fit.
Panelling painted in Blue Gum, Paint & Paper Library.