Home Style: Scandi Island Life

Wednesday, 15 January 2025 08:00

Fusing calming Scandi style and earthy textures with edgy industrial notes, Olivia and Mark have lovingly restored their Victorian terrace to bring together everything they love

Although Olivia and Mark spent most of their teenage years living on the Isle of Wight, their paths weren’t to cross until they met in London in their twenties. “I was living in Sweden at the time and was visiting friends in the city when I met Mark in Covent Garden,” recalled Olivia. “It’s not often you meet someone who has lived on the Isle of Wight, and when you do, you feel a certain affinity.”

Jump forward a year, and Olivia had joined Mark in London, where they rented a flat in West Hampstead, yet, both had a hankering to return to the Island. “Although neither Mark or I were born on the Island, (I was born in Sweden, and Mark in Kenya) we both spent our teenage years here, and each had fond memories of its simple pace of life, the beautiful nature and quiet beaches.” So, when an opportunity arose for Olivia to work from home, the couple decided it was time to swap the busy pace of the capital for calmer island living and looked to buy their first home together there. “Mark worked away for most of the week and, it made sense to make a home here where I could be nearer family, particularly as the property prices suited our tight budget more than London,” said Olivia.

Keen on finding a renovation project they could put their stamp on, the couples’ property search started in the lively seaside town of Cowes, but when nothing popped up with the right character and Victorian features they were after, they widened their search and spotted this project in the quaint harbour town of Yarmouth on the west coast. “Although it’s not as big or bustling as Cowes, there’s a lovely vibe here with art galleries, cool cafes, and rows of pretty period homes.

So, it’s no surprise that we fell head over heels for this good-looking Victorian terrace as soon as we saw it, even if it was in a sad, run-down state,” said Olivia, who admitted as first time renovators they were a little naïve as to how much work they had taken on. “We had a really tight budget, so we planned to do most the work ourselves. Fortunately, the house had great bones and we didn’t need to make any big structural changes. It was simply a case of gutting it and reinstating its character.”

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Living at Olivia’s parents nearby for the best part of a year, the couple spent all their free time on the renovation. The first job was to create a bigger kitchen by removing a couple of non-load- bearing walls that housed a tiny utility and downstairs toilet. They then added dark contemporary French doors and a matching picture window over the sink to ensure the north facing room was flooded with natural light. “As this room can be prone to darkness, we wanted to keep it warm and inviting with earthy tones and textures, so we went with rich, wooden cabinets and tumbled sandstone floor tiles for their cosy Nordic vibes,” said Olivia.

The couple then fitted the carcasses, doors and wooden worktops themselves, and called in the professionals to install the plumbing and electrics. “Learning new DIY skills via You Tube tutorials not only saved us a fortune on labour costs, it also meant we could bespoke the look to get exactly want we wanted, such as leaving the copper pipes and steel beams exposed rather than boxing them, for a funky, industrial touch,” said Olivia.

The couple’s newfound DIY skills were soon put to the test in the living space when they started renovating the original floorboards. On discovering the boards were covered in a layer of tar, and that an industrial sander wouldn’t remove the sticky substance, the couple were forced to scrape off the tar by hand. “It was a horrible job and took ages but revealing the stunning original boards has been totally worth the effort. We then simply enhanced their natural beauty with a clear oil,” said Olivia.

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The couple continued this simplistic, minimalist approach when it came to decorating the rest of the interiors, sticking to brilliant white for the walls and highlighting the period skirting boards and door frames in a soothing grey. In the seating area, Olivia teamed a cool linen sofa with vintage cane tables and chairs for a calm feel, while a mix of heirlooms and vintage finds in the dining space create a classic feel. “Scandi style is synonymous with looking fresh and bright, so I lightened the furniture up with a coat of white paint,” said Olivia. “I also reupholstered the dining chairs, including a vintage one given to me by my parents, in Orla Kiely fabric, to bring a touch of interest to the neutral setting.”

Olivia has continued these subtle pops of pattern and colour upstairs too, such as the vibrant blue statement wall in the master bedroom that enhances the period fireplace. “I love how this energetic blue pops alongside the bright white wardrobes. It gives the room such a serene feel,” said Olivia, who loves how her neutral home can be changed up easily. “We have added character to the house through the details, such as pattern, colour and textures, and these can all get a refresh if we feel like an update or a seasonal change,” said Olivia. “A house has to tell a story about its owners, and we feel we’ve successfully bought together our unique heritages in the place that we both love.”

Photography: Holly Jolliffe/Living4media

Words: Louise O’Bryan/Living4media

Home Style: Scandi Island Life

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