Hove‘s ‘Apartment of Curves’: Artist Transforms victorian Studio into Coastal Dream
‘I wanted the space to have the curved style I love,’ says artist and designer turned property developer Lois O’Hara of her Victorian studio flat in Hove, East Sussex.’Curved archways,worktop ends and wooden fluting feature throughout.’ It’s not hard to see why Lois dubs her home ‘the apartment of curves’.
‘Predominantly, I create artwork in public spaces, including murals, where luminous colours are the focus,’ she continues. ‘For my interior transformations, the colours are still joyful but slightly more muted. The curved, fluid style is consistent in both my renovations and artistic projects.’
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She admits that her coastal location, with the movement of the sea and the fluidity found in nature, has also inspired her aesthetic: ‘so it’s only right that my home renovations and interior decisions nod to this.’ While colourful and stylish now, the studio was in a sorry state when Lois found it. ‘It was occupied by eight squatters,’ she recalls. ‘They had made makeshift bunk beds out of MDF and there were maggots in the kitchen!’
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So, after giving the whole place a deep clean, Lois got to work ripping out and relocating the kitchen,upgrading all the plumbing and changing the rotten flooring in the bathroom. Though, the renovation wasn’t without its challenges. ‘The flat roof was leaking into the kitchen, so I had to get that repaired,’ remembers Lois. ‘There were also several holes in the floorboards to fix and damp areas to sort, while every wall and ceiling has been plastered by my dad.’
The layout, too, presented a few problems. ‘It was quiet complicated figuring out how to swap the kitchen with the living space, especially when there wasn’t much room to work with,’ says Lois.
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‘I also decided to make good use of the high ceilings by creating a mezzanine floor for the bedroom, which was hand-built in wood. The staircase curves at the bottom and fits into the space perfectly. I had to sacrifice labelling the property as a one-bed, but I think it’s worth it.’ Lois partnered with Lick
