Question for those of you who like period houses
 

This is a question for those of you who live or would like in a period house. More specifically if you are 25-45 age group and the property is small Victorian.

Assuming there are restored features elsewhere ie stripped floors, fireplaces, coving etc do you prefer the kitchen and bathrooms to be modern/contemporary or more traditional?

Thanks for your help.

Well,I think the obvious recipient for questioning would be our Tony. ;)

I think its down to the quality of the property itsself...many old houses nowadays have already had their guts destroyed or removed in the 50s/60s/70's etc be it for decoration, conversion to seperate dwellings/flats, re-wiring, heating/plumbing etc.

If what remains is orginal and salvageable, its nice to keep it. But I wouldn't strive to fit a brand new "olde worlde" kicthen/bathroom for the pure sakes of it - its not original and it'll be obvious it won't be. So If I were fitting new stuff I'd prefer to fit whatever is current and fitting to my needs (contemporary).

I nearly bought a victorian farm-workers house. Old on the outside...new on the inside.

It had been renovated and modernnised on a massive scale. Exterior-wise everything was in keeping - with the exception that the windows were made taller (full height downstairs) - thats the only obvious feature on the outside, bar the skylights on the one roof. Can't comment on what original feature the house had as originally it was pretty ramshackle.

Interior was all modern, no original features remained: Downstairs was open plan, with a massive kitchen diner (the inspriation for my extension to be honest) and a seperate lounge. It did have a Aga, but to be frank, it looked out of place. Upstairs had replica column radiators (downstairs was underfloor) and vaulted ceiling for the main bedroom.


Now on the flip-side I now live in a newish house (built 1989)...which had a "traditional" farmhouse style kicthen. I hated it....I hate anything new that's purposly made to look old. I suppose some people call it retro or kitsch, but its not for me.

Done a few ding :thumb:

Full old school throughout , odd wall down to bare brick , slipper baths old square basins w/c's etc......kitchen full on modern with excessive led lighting.

Them there women loooove it :thumb:

Yes, but under the TDW Land Reformation Act 2014 only he is allowed to own property.

Ali, I sort of agree with you. My own home is Edwardian and I've retained the nice features ie stained glass windows, fireplaces, coving etc but the bathrooms and kitchens are fully modern.

However I do see some newly refurbed period properties where the bathrooms pay tribute to their original era and the kitchens are the painted effect type.

Hi Donny, so you think Victorian style bathroom but modern kitchen?

Certainly do :thumb:
Every house should have a small twist to it....have some designs done .
The last one I was in had the dark charcoal units and black granite...sounds dull / dreary but the spark put so much effort into the lighting it was stunning and didn't look out of place with the hall / dining room doors open.
I love working on old with a modern twist....hate fecking new builds

My house was built in 1880, original features such as coving, fireplaces (I've 7:lol1:) have to stay like you say. But the downstairs shower room has been fully modernised, as will the upstairs family bathroom when the time comes.

Kitchen, well to be honest we really can't decide tbh. One week we're planning a fully blown modern, them the next it's more traditional. :wonder:

I'm 35.

Thanks guys.

I like a mix of the two, pay homage to the original features where possible but I think most people especially the slightly younger generation like the creature comforts, so I'd go with a fancy kitchen but try and make the bathroom a little period ish, with a free standing roll top jobbie women like a fancy bath to relax in so that's always going to be a winner, but I'd still put a good separate shower in that has plenty of water pressure.:thumb:

I know what you mean. I think you can get away with a tradition style bathroom, as you can get very high quality reproductions and use reclaimed items. Couple that with good quality tiles and it'll look good.

Kitchens, as already mentioned is alot more difficult to make authentic, mainly because everything will likely be based on pre-fab kitchen units which will be obvious, and almost always you'll have to have a modern cooker in there for sakes of conveienence...even if there is a aga or stove in there, and of course there's no such thing as a Victorian fridge for example. I do think however you can mix old with new.....old stove and old sink with orginal slab floor combined with contemporary kitchen units and work tops with built in appliances.

If there's one room in the house that's particularly well-suited to a traditional victorian theme, it has to be the dungeon ;):D

You could have coolbox arrangement instead of fridge, for some real authenticity :)


Start up an ice delivery business, every man and his dog is on under 10k these days self employed. :)

I'd prefer to see it retain as much period features as possible such as fireplaces, etc.

A bit of sympathy to its past.

A fridge isn't part of the house per se like a fireplace, it is just white good. I don't think 'traditionalists' are advocating banning TV's and Xbox's from the house lol.

Ahh, but if you're going for a theme or style, everything in that room should be kept in keeping. From the outset of design and planning, stuff that's out of keeping (or just ugly) should be hidden, or at least positioned out of line-of-sight

Nothing worse than having a nice kitchen blotted by a Zanussi washing machine slap bang in the middle of it. Its not part of the house, but its an essential item that has to be there and will still be seen by whoever walks through it. Its something to be avoided from a style/design point of view.

So given the opportunity...like during renovation, you do your best to put stuff like that out of the way. Be it built in or hidden away in a closed off utility room. The same can be done with fridges and other white goods.

"Traditional effect" Oak doors on a chipboard carcass was what I was also indirectly implying, along with glued block-wood, melamine or composite granite tops, coupled with machine-made "traditional effect" architrave...all stuff the typical new "traditional effect" kitchen has...Its a matter of taste, but for me....yuk.

Modern throughout, stick a roll top bath in if you have to.

I'm staring at a pretty sweet fireplace that hasn't worked for 8 years but I won't rip it out because it's an original feature, I hope whoever buys it throws it in a skip and moves the wood burner.

Haha that reminds me our next door neighbour when we were teens, 70' semi, complete with retro fake plastic roof beams in the kitchen

personaly i woudl prefer the look to match, but modern function

I like to mix cutting edge modern fittings in with the traditional features already there. Where the original looks original but the new fittings are obviously modern and contrast with the original! Its difficult to get 'just right' but when it is it looks stunning!

:idea:
I must say that this is my own personal preference, as you say its a bit tricky to do. Saying that the easiest way to do it is to add the cutting edge modern kitchen and bathroom.

For me, ancient cosmetic look throughout with all the conveniences that the modern times provide e.g. have central heating but have the radiator covers with fantastic Victorian artistry on them.

LOL that's like me. I'd also certainly leave original feature left alone regardless of its uselessness. But I'd try my utmost to make it work; even by displaying false flame behind it. Modern false flames look amazing; just like the real ones.

I personally do not live in a Victorian or an Edwardian house now, but I have much appreciation for old but fit properties. Not fan of old properties falling apart, stinking of mould and looking dismal with no heating and a pathetic Rayburn chugging along to cook a chicken all day long. People that live in such properties and feel like a millionaires need to have a reality check. They should either spend money on doing the house/mansion up or move into newer property which would be much better for their health. I know some people like that hence the comment. If they don't spend the money on doing it up, then they're either not millionaires, can't even afford a new house, or simply penny pinchers.

FAO period property dwellers: Please do post pictures up of your period properties. I'm not asking you to put up your addresses etc. on internet, but it will be nice to see how aesthetically pleasing your dwelling looks. :cool:

"Period" features....
Can be a "bloody" nightmare to work around.
Ahem....