Villa Ombra

Overview

A listed 1890s villa, empty for a decade, with frescoed ceilings under false panels and a heritage board watching every move. The brief: modern family comfort that a conservation officer could love.

Challenge

Every intervention needed approval — heating, wiring, even the kitchen extract. We spent four months in survey and negotiation before a single wall was touched, documenting every layer we found so the restoration could be argued room by room.

Solution

Original frescoes were uncovered and conserved; new services run invisibly through purpose-built skirtings and chimney voids. Bathrooms sit inside freestanding oak cabinets so no historic wall was ever chased. The board approved all forty-one submissions without a single refusal.