‘They’ve more money than sense!’ George Clarke’s Old House, New Home viewers admit they can’t see the difference after couple spend £100k ‘decorating and refitting’ their London Victorian terrace
- Masim and Maria, from Clapham, had lived in their Victorian terrace house in Clapham for 15 years
- However various changes to the property over the years had left it dysfunctional and difficult for the family
- Appeared on George Clarke’s Old House, New Home last night as they set about transforming the property
- However many viewers questioned their design choices, with one saying: ‘They’ve more money than sense!’
A couple were slammed by George Clarke’s Old House, New Home viewers for splashing out £100,000 ‘decorating and refitting’ their Victorian terrace home in London.
Appearing in last night’s episode of the Channel 4 show, NHS consultant psychiatrists Masim and Maria explained that while they had lived in a five-bedroom Victorian terrace house in Clapham for 15 years, they now hoped to transform into their dream family home.
Packed with original features, the couple said they wanted to make the home more practical for the family with a ‘flexible’ £50,000 budget.
And after an eight month renovation, Masim and Maria told George they were overjoyed with the results, despite confessing they had spent £50,000 more than their original budget.
However many of those watching confessed they couldn’t tell the difference between the before and after shots of the home, with one writing: ‘They’ve more money than taste, or sense. That wetroom is blinding!’
NHS consultant psychiatrists Masim and Maria were slammed by George Clarke’s Old House, New Home viewers for splashing out £100,000 ‘decorating and refitting’ their Victorian terrace home in London (pictured, their kitchen before)
After an eight month renovation, Masim and Maria told George they were overjoyed with the results, despite confessing they had spent over £50,000 more than their original budget (pictured, the kitchen after)
The couple had made various changes to the home over the 15 years they had lived in the property, but felt many, such as knocking down a wall between two front rooms, were actually impractical (pictured, the front room before)
They transformed the space with new furnishings as well as pops of colour on the chimney breasts and a new wooden floor (pictured)
Another commented: ‘Christ no. Nothing wrong with that old kitchen, just take the island out and put warm, soft colors in. Bloody awful now.’
Visiting the property ahead of the renovation, George said it was ‘really light and bright’, with Maria adding: ‘We still love it, there are just bits that just don’t work for us.’
Every room in the house needed a rethink, with the way the old bones of the house have been reconfigured now impractical to a modern family.
The couple had made various changes to their home over the years, including knocking the two front rooms into a large living space.
Meanwhile the wet room in the top floor of the house was cluttered and impractical for Maria’s mother to use (pictured, before the renovation)
The couple modernised the space, using a marble style tiling and gadgets in order to create a more practical bathroom (pictured)
However they confessed they never actually used the front room, as Maria explained: ‘The front room is quite dark, so we tend to spend a lot of time in the kitchen.’
Meanwhile there were steep steps connecting it to the kitchen, which weren’t ideal for Maria’s mother, 91-year-old Margaret, who lived with the family.
Maria said: ‘The steps are really so dangerous for my mum. The house doesn’t quite work now that Mums mobility isn’t as good as what it was. We’d quite like to make it a bit safer for her.
‘We want an open space, it’s all cluttered up. We want to be able to use it more.’
Meanwhile she added: ‘I hate the kitchen island, I absolutely hate it. We’re a very sociable family, so this kitchen is a really important area.’
On the first floor were the master bedroom, an underused office and a smaller bedroom for one of their teenage children.
Despite their enthusiasm for the property, many of those watching slated the couple for their design choices and £100,000 budget (pictured, Maria and Masim)
But the couple suggested the spaces weren’t working for them, with Masim saying: ‘The office has never quite worked, it’s a space we never really used.’
Meanwhile on the top floor were two further bedrooms, with Maria saying: ‘We were going to ask my mother to move to the middle floor, just so she could be closer to us, but she really, really doesn’t want to move.
‘She loves it, even though it’s right at the top of the house which is not great.’
But for Margaret, it was all about having a room with a view, with the grandmother admitting: ‘You can see right into the city. I want this room, whatever else you do.’
The couple said they had a flexible budget of £50,000.
The couple explained to George that the office space was underused and impractical, with the family rarely using the small balcony terrace over looking the garden
During the renovations, Maria and Masim moved one of their teenage children into the room at the back of the house (pictured)
Meanwhile Maria’s elderly mother confessed she had little desire to move out of her comfortable attic bedroom in the property (pictured)
Maria and Masim transformed the space with a lick of paint and new carpet, as well as new furnishings which left Margaret blown away
Sitting down with the couple, George advised getting rid of the island unit, saying: ‘We could design a really beautiful integrated storage area, it could be like a cocktail bar.’
Meanwhile he suggested they supersize the dining table, while a bespoke built in bench will maximise storage.
He explained how new sofas in the living area would help the space feel less like a corridor, and on the top floor, Margaret’s bedroom would be getting a refresh to make the most of her beloved view. ‘
And after eight months, George returned to visit the couple and see their incredible renovation efforts.
Speaking about the kitchen renovation, which saw the family rip out the old white units and replaced them with chic black panels, Masim said: ‘It just seems so much bigger without the island. It’s just beautiful.’
Meanwhile George admitted he was blown away by other changes to the property, including transforming the office into a trendy bedroom.
But after the presenter asked the couple how much they had spent, they groaned and put their heads in their hands.
Masim said: ‘In the end, it’s awful really, but we ended up doubling the budget to £100,000. The way we’ve looked at it, this isn’t just for Margaret and our son, this is our time.
‘We’re not going to be doing any work after this.’
Before the renovation, the kitchen area was impractical, with a large island which the family said they hated having to navigate around (pictured)
They added a lengthy bench along one side of the extension, giving the family plenty of space for socialising, and removed the tricky island
Meanwhile the family also added pops of blue throughout the home to create a stunning living space (pictured, the renovated lounge)
Maria said: ‘It’s the best thing we could have invested in. Thankyou so much.’
But many of those watching were left scratching their heads over what the couple had spent their budget on.
One commented: ‘Nothing wrong with the first house – new sofa, fix the leak, tidy up and it would cost less than £2,000.’
Another wrote: ‘All they’ve done is redecorate as far as I can see.’
Despite the couple’s enthusiasm about the renovation, many of those watching questioned how they had spent £100,000 because they ‘didn’t do any building work’
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