London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jun 20, 2025

Back from the brink: saving a London home

It was almost falling down – but this east London terrace is now a treasure-filled sanctuary
It’s the house that shouldn’t be here!” jokes creative dynamo David Hodgson, about the Victorian mid-terrace in east London he discovered six years ago, when it was split into two flats and was charmingly dilapidated.

“Our surveyor said the house was never built to survive,” he explains. “The street was bombed during the war, and the house was so old it had subsidence and leaned to the left. The roof had a hole in it because it was never finished properly.”

To make it sturdy, strapping and RSJs were added, the roof was repaired and chimney breasts in the back removed.

“Naively we thought it just needed a lick of paint,” laughs Hodgson, who lives with his husband, designer Henry Holland, and their French bulldog, Peggy.

“It’s our first home and I call it my little two-up two-down workman’s cottage as I’m from up north,” says the Cumbria-born designer. “We used to live in north London but you can basically afford a car-parking space in Primrose Hill,” he says. “All our friends were moving east and we wanted to be near them. It’s a lovely area with Victoria Park right on our doorstep.”

Today, you step through the sleek black front door into the narrow hallway, where a punchy graphic print reads: “The Sun Shines Here Every Day”. The ground floor is an open-plan living-dining area with a separate kitchen painted calming plaster pink, with minty-green cabinets handmade by their builder.

The kitchen had been a dark and poky affair next to the downstairs bathroom. “You could literally sit on the toilet and see if your pans were boiling over,” Hodgson says. “So we opened up the layout downstairs to add more light, and moved the bathroom back upstairs by converting the third bedroom – and some of that space was used to extend the master bedroom and add built-in wardrobes, too.”

A small “yarden”, as Hodgson calls it, downstairs to the back of the house, is where he tends a vegetable patch. Upstairs is a guestroom-cum-office with a small terrace, the master bedroom and a bathroom with roll-top bath.

Sash windows, four-panel doors and cast iron radiators were restored or replaced to keep the Victorian character. In the kitchen, Hodgson used old marble offcuts from the flagstone floor to make the white-veined worktops. “We’ve been really frugal with designing the kitchen and bathroom,” he says, pointing out the herringbone bathroom floor. “I think I must have been influenced by the floors in Sketch (the restaurant designed by artist Martin Creed), so I drew out my design, chose different-coloured marble offcuts and had them made into tiles. It’s my favourite room in the house.”

Original decorative features were preserved, such as the hallway ceiling cornicing and the cast iron fireplace in the living room with ceramic floral tiles. They stripped back the banisters and floors in the rest of the house, later painting the staircase matt black. “The 1970s orange hue on the wood everywhere was like a thick varnish,” recalls Hodgson, “It reminded me of my childhood and my nan’s house.”

Hodgson’s resourceful and inspiring eye for design is apparent throughout. As the creative director of accessories label Lulu Guinness, which he joined in 2018, he masterminded a brand revamp and launched the bestselling Bibi tote, a favourite with celebrities including Bella Hadid and Lily James.

Previously, he ran a consultancy, advising brands from Coach to Topshop and Liberty London on their accessories collections. As with his products, his home has bags of personality.

It’s mostly filled with the fruits of his longstanding love of vintage finds – colourful pottery vases, ornamental curios, sculptural crockery, candlesticks, glassware and porcelain clocks, including one in the kitchen they recently acquired from Henry’s mum’s chateau in France. There are family hand-me-downs too, each with a story.

A trunk belonging to Hodgson’s great grandfather, a miner, which found its way to the US during the Gold Rush, now has a new life as a quirky side table; and a 1950s armchair once covered in holey red vinyl has been revived with patched-together unfinished tapestries made by his grandmother, depicting colourful woodland scenes.

“Henry calls the house my memory box. He says I always have junk – I call it treasure,” laughs Hodgson. “I can tell you where everything that’s around the house is from or who gave it to me, and I keep random things, like all my toothbrushes since I was child, and pine cones I’ve been collecting since I was a kid growing up in the Lake District. My life is basically a mix of The Borrowers and The Good Life, as I was brought up with make-do-and-mend, and to cherish stuff. If you don’t grow up with a lot, you appreciate things more.”

Their home may be a mix of sentimental decor and the odd eBay find, but more contemporary purchases come with their own stories, too. They saved for ages to buy Dirk Vander Kooij’s striking Melting Pot table, which livens up the dining room and is surrounded by 1970s X-Line stacking chairs designed by Niels Jørgen Haugesen. “We really wanted something amazing and weren’t prepared to just make do with any old table.”
Advertisement

There are midcentury accents everywhere too, such as Herman Miller Bubble Saucer Pendant ceiling lights designed by George Nelson in 1947, Ercol chairs, and in the bathroom an old medicine cabinet from a flea market in France. In the guest room is a G Plan wardrobe and vintage mirror.

The palette is nicely edited, mostly white, grey and natural shades throughout, with splashes of colour in the mementos, retro textiles, vibrant artworks and photography. Vintage Interview covers by illustrator Richard Bernstein – some signed by Andy Warhol – fill the walls, along with Martin Parr’s saturated beachgoers, John Booth’s bold hues and a triptych of exaggerated cartoonish faces by Spanish artist Cristina BanBan. There are pots of oversized plants too, one in a huge pink and orange stripy terracotta eggcup designed by Tina Vaia – a wedding gift to the couple.

The space evokes joy and warmth, a reflection of the couple. “It’s become our little sanctuary,” says Hodgson. “We love being at home, pottering around in the garden, walking the dog in the park – and we’re so glad it’s still standing.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
UK Home Secretary Apologizes Over Child Grooming Failures
Trump Organization Launches 5G Mobile Network and Golden Handset
Towcester Hosts 2025 English Greyhound Derby Amid Industry Scrutiny
Gary Oldman and David Beckham Knighted in King's Birthday Honours
Over 30,000 Lightning Strikes Recorded Across UK During Overnight Storms
Princess of Wales Returns to Public Duties at Trooping the Colour
Red Arrows Use Sustainable Fuel in Historic Trooping the Colour Flypast
Former Welsh First Minister Addresses Unionist Concerns Over Irish Language
Iran Signals Openness to Nuclear Negotiations Amid Ongoing Regional Tensions
France Bars Israeli Arms Companies from Paris Defense Expo
King Charles Leads Tribute to Air India Crash Victims at Trooping the Colour
Jack Pitchford Embarks on 200-Mile Walk to Support Stem Cell Charity
Surrey Hikers Take on Challenge of Climbing 11 Peaks in a Single Day
UK Deploys RAF Jets to Middle East Amid Israel-Iran Tensions
Two Skydivers Die in 'Tragic Accident' at Devon Airfield
Sainsbury's and Morrisons Accused of Displaying Prohibited Tobacco Ads
UK Launches National Inquiry into Grooming Gangs
Families Seek Closure After Air India Crash
Gold Emerges as Global Safe Haven Amid Uncertainty
Trump Reports $57 Million Earnings from Crypto Venture
Trump's Military Parade Sparks Concerns Over Authoritarianism
Nationwide 'No Kings' Protests Challenge Trump's Leadership
UK Deploys Jets to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions
Trump's Anti-War Stance Tested Amid Israel-Iran Conflict
Germany Holds First Veterans Celebration Since WWII
U.S. Health Secretary Dismisses CDC Vaccine Advisory Committee
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Exiled Iranian Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Overthrow of Khamenei Regime
×