This Edwardian boot room in our client’s Queen Anne country house needed to serve many purposes. It was part of a busy, family country home where wellies, school bags, hats, sticks, coats and much more all need a place to be stored.
Our considered design needed to factor in the free movement of people and dogs, and the fact that as children grow older, their needs will change.
A place for everything, for every member of the family - great storage idea for a small boot room The main entrance to the boot room was just off the vestibule. In one corner a staircase descended into the cellar.
A boiler cupboard hid behind the staircase, leaving us with one wall for storage. Space was precious in this relatively tight and busy room.
Up and over cupboards were a popular space saving mechanism in Edwardian offices
The boot room was designed for this Queen Anne house
It was important to balance robust practicality with elegance.
We revived an Edwardian style of the “up and over” cupboard door so that when opened, the doors didn’t intrude awkwardly into the space. It worked as a clever storage idea. This type of cupboard is no longer manufactured, so we dissected a surviving example and engineered a replica in brass.
A bespoke flamed marble sink in front of the window
We made all the brassware using ‘lost wax casting’ to produce accurate reproductions of historic brass handles. We also designed and machined the mechanism which allowed the up-and-over doors to work.
We chose flamed granite for the sink because of its toughness but also for its pleasing texture. The flaming process involves searing the granite surface with flame and then cooling it rapidly, causing the surface to shatter.
Boot drawers have removable stainless steel linings
A peninsula in Edwardian boot room with beautiful and functional storage ideas
We created a room that was functional and beautiful – a hand-painted traditional mud room that greatly added to the ‘liveability’ of the house and provided storage ideas in a small mud room.
Now read ‘How to design a boot room’ in our Journal.
