A careful restoration of a Victorian double-upper in the heart of Edinburgh — revealing the home it always wanted to be.
We saw the opportunity to bring it back to life — to strip away the noise and let its original proportions, light, and materials breathe again. The result is a quietly confident family home that feels timeless, honest, and distinctly Edinburgh.
Restoration · Interior architecture · Landscape design
Edinburgh, Scotland
Full renovation · Spatial design · Material restoration · Detailing · Styling
2021
THE SPARK
This project was an immediate yes. Unlike earlier interventions such as the Mezzanine Apartment, this one called for restoration over reinvention; a chance to let the building return to itself.
When we first walked in, we saw through the layers of student-era partitions and heavy-handed renovations to the bones of something truly special.
The Challenge
By the time we found it, the townhouse was tired and fragmented. Artex ceilings, timber stud walls, overlaid floors, and misplaced bathrooms had dulled the original flow and erased key period details.
Every surface needed renewal, but without erasing history. The challenge was to restore character without nostalgia, creating a warm, practical family home that felt authentic to both its Georgian roots and contemporary life.
The Approach
The building guided our hand.
We stripped back every addition, re-plastered and skim-coated every surface, and restored original timber floors throughout. Painted doors, reclaimed hardware, and restored stonework reinstated the quiet rhythm of a late 19th-century home.
Outside, we landscaped the approach to create that essential moment of arrival — every step home feeling intentional. The design principle was simple: listen to what the building wants to be, and let restraint do the talking.
THE TRANSFORMATION
- Complete removal of later partitions to restore original proportions
- Full redecoration with soft, neutral tones and natural light emphasis
- Reinstated Victorian-inspired tiling in the entrance
- Restored concrete and cast-stone staircases
- Added skylit shower room on the top floor with views to Edinburgh Castle
- Porthole window reconnecting the interior to the Meadows