Banker-turned-interior designer Julia returned to the UK from living in Hong Kong in 2023, eager to be close to her family. She found her dream home in her favourite part of Wimbledon, and she jumped into an ambitious renovation almost immediately. Julia’s vision was to expand her new Victorian terraced house with a wraparound extension to the ground floor, plus a loft extension for an additional bedroom, turning her two-storey into a three-storey. This project would not only create a more spacious and cohesive layout, but also allow ample light to fill the previously dark interior spaces.

The house was a typical Victorian terraced house. The kitchen looked so different before—it was much smaller, and there was a tiny door at the back of the house. Solid walls separated the rooms, so no light passed through, and it felt very dark. The downstairs ceiling was incredibly high, making the other floors of the house feel sort of squished in. So, we ended up knocking everything down inside, which was really scary. I remember walking in one day and it was pure rubble, no walls, nothing. We lowered the downstairs ceiling, and then brought the upstairs ceiling down too in order to create a spacious loft, which has become the master bedroom. We put a whole new roof on, and I got as much glass in everywhere as possible to flood the house with light. It was a big project, but if you're gonna do it, why not go the whole way?

I think because I had so much work done, there weren’t really any nasty surprises. If someone had turned around and said, ‘Your floorboards are rotten’, it wouldn’t have mattered because they were coming up anyway. So that was quite nice, actually—I didn’t feel too stressed. The biggest surprise was that I wanted to do a wraparound, but the manhole is hidden under the patio. You lift it up, and there’s a drain underneath. So I couldn’t build over it, which is why we ended up doing a side extension and a rear extension, leaving that space clear. But actually, I’m quite pleased because I think the odd shape gave me an opportunity to put a bit more character into the space, as opposed to just the usual rectangular box!

I found Resi online; it was a pure search-and-find exercise. I knew for a project of this size that I would need an architect, and I really liked that everything was on a portal. You can go in, and it tells you step-by-step which stages you're going through and what information you need. It was my first time going through a process like this, so I really appreciated that, and everyone at Resi that I've spoken to has been really helpful. It was a good experience! I also used Resi Connect to get my structural engineer and my building control office, so it was all together, which was really handy.

I used to work in banking both overseas and originally in London; I did that for about 30 years. Interior design has always been a passion more than anything else. When I came back to London, I decided I’d been in banking for too long, so I ended up following my passion. I started with my own project, then did projects for friends, and it just sort of built from there! Now I’m doing project management for a total rebuild of a property. I like that now I can manage my own time and flexibility. For example, I never had a dog while I was in banking, because my hours were really long. But this job gives me the flexibility to have a dog, walk him, and spend time with him, which is what I always wanted.

Interior design by Julia, at @mallorninteriordesign.

Photography by Peter Furlong.