It is five years since Katie and Jamie Allan took on the mammoth task of converting a post office, shop and café into a family home. The couple had clocked the “for sale” sign, but it wasn’t until the owners secured planning permission for residential use that it piqued their interest. “I thought we’d spend a month doing the bare minimum, before moving in and finishing the work,” admits Katie. The reality was five months living with her sister nearby, and a further four years to finish the project.
The Allans re-thought the layout from scratch. Reinstating the original Georgian hallway was the first step. With this natural divide in place, the former post office and shop became a sitting room while the adjoining café was turned into a dining area with a midcentury-modern vibe.
“I’ve been lucky enough to inherit some classic furniture from my parents, like an original Habitat floor lamp and Arkana dining table and chairs,” says Katie, who runs an interior design business called Joan with her sister. “Along the way I’ve added my own designer finds, such as a 1970s Eames lounge chair. My sister and I are constantly trawling fairs and auctions for vintage one-off pieces for ourselves and our clients.”
Elsewhere, a large utility room was created from the former dining room and a second kitchen now functions as a study with green walls and Timorous Beasties blind. The old catering kitchen has been opened up, too, thanks to a garden-room extension with Crittall windows. It flows through to a breakfast room with log burner and tile-effect wallpaper by Smink Things, inspired by Lowry’s paintings of industrial architecture. “Jamie re-used the old sorting office table legs to make a really long dining table,” she says. “This is where all the fun happens, and every party ends up.”
The highlight for Jamie is a man-cave basement with Victorian pool table, wine cellar and TV snug. “I am actually allowed down there,” laughs Katie, who bought 22,000 2p coins as flooring for the cellar. “The tiler thought I was crazy, but he’s thinking of doing the same in his bathroom.”
Upstairs the living quarters have been re-configured so the sitting room is now a master bedroom with striking Barneby Gates Honey Bee wallpaper. A landing was constructed by shrinking the old master bedroom. Other rooms were knocked together – a bathroom and store room are now a bedroom, while a shower room and airing cupboard have become the bathroom, with an original fireplace discovered in the airing cupboard.
Next on the agenda is restoring the derelict barn in the garden. “I feel extremely fortunate to have a unique family home that reflects what we’re all about,” says Katie.
