Like all the best-laid plans, ours went awry.
It was supposed to be so simple. Then again, we should have known better than to think we could get away with something simple! I (“Aglaya”) live and work in London, having moved here (or moved back here, depending on your perspective) from New York in 2007. André, my fiancé, owns and runs an architecture firm based in New York, and splits his time between the two cities.
Anyway. André and I bought a flat on a leafy west London street. It was a wreck. As an architect, André does this every day, so we figured we would gut it, renovate it, and live happily ever after. But then...
Our trusted builders, whom André had worked with for years, decamped right after demolition! Suddenly, there we were with no builders, limited funds, one totally uninhabitable flat and the two of us needing a roof over our heads - literally!
So, our straightforward (albeit massive) renovation project is turning out to be anything but. For one thing, we are living “on site” (and it is a full-fledged construction site!) during the whole process – because we don’t have anywhere else to stay. For another, André decided to turn an obstacle into an opportunity for him to physically build something he’s designed, and to get far more involved in the construction process than an architect normally would. Given that architects are often accused of being so far removed from construction that they sometimes design things that can’t be built, this is pretty radical ! Finally, we face the additional challenge of André needing to balance his time between running a practice in New York, and building a home in London.
We hope you enjoy the story, but we also hope it gives you an insider’s view into the drama of the ultimate DIY project! For anyone thinking of doing something similar, you can also pick up some tips that should reassure you that it CAN be done, no matter how daunting things look.
It was supposed to be so simple. Then again, we should have known better than to think we could get away with something simple! I (“Aglaya”) live and work in London, having moved here (or moved back here, depending on your perspective) from New York in 2007. André, my fiancé, owns and runs an architecture firm based in New York, and splits his time between the two cities.
Anyway. André and I bought a flat on a leafy west London street. It was a wreck. As an architect, André does this every day, so we figured we would gut it, renovate it, and live happily ever after. But then...
Our trusted builders, whom André had worked with for years, decamped right after demolition! Suddenly, there we were with no builders, limited funds, one totally uninhabitable flat and the two of us needing a roof over our heads - literally!
So, our straightforward (albeit massive) renovation project is turning out to be anything but. For one thing, we are living “on site” (and it is a full-fledged construction site!) during the whole process – because we don’t have anywhere else to stay. For another, André decided to turn an obstacle into an opportunity for him to physically build something he’s designed, and to get far more involved in the construction process than an architect normally would. Given that architects are often accused of being so far removed from construction that they sometimes design things that can’t be built, this is pretty radical ! Finally, we face the additional challenge of André needing to balance his time between running a practice in New York, and building a home in London.
We hope you enjoy the story, but we also hope it gives you an insider’s view into the drama of the ultimate DIY project! For anyone thinking of doing something similar, you can also pick up some tips that should reassure you that it CAN be done, no matter how daunting things look.
