Newsroom for improvement

Published on Friday 6 March 2009 13:13

FORMER employers of Reuters would never recognise the inside of their old Edinburgh office now that it's been transformed by Ian Murray and Jen McPhail

Jen McPhail certainly had a surprise when she first visited this lower ground and garden level flat at 10b Oxford Terrace in Edinburgh's West End, a flat her fianc, Ian Murray, had bought within just six days of viewing it. "When I walked in I was thinking, 'Where do we start? What have you bought?'" she says.

The place was, to put it mildly, a little rough round the edges, having previously been a language school and prior to that the Edinburgh newsroom for Reuters. Ian's brother, Richard, the managing director of property agency Murray and Currie, had noticed it was about to come on the market.

"All my days I've fancied having a garden, and something a little bit different," says Ian, who is director of the motoring company Azur International. While cars are a passion, property is clearly up there as well for Ian, who recently completed an 8,000 sq/ft house in Florida, parts of which he designed himself, while he has also set up as a realtor in the States.

Ian's reaction to this flat was instantaneous, even though it needed to be completely gutted, which he did over the first six weeks. "Ian knew exactly what he was going to do with the space," says Jen. "He has this ability to just picture something; to take an utter wreck and somehow make it into the most beautiful space, and do it to perfection." Jen's strengths lie in the finishes – helping to choose the tiles and bathroom and kitchen fittings, for example. "I love that; it's great fun but coming in and starting from scratch…" she shakes her head. "I just go with the flow."

Indeed, throughout the conversation Jen and Ian keep referring back to the way the space itself flows, and this desire influenced their choice of palette, from the paint colours from Valtti's Liquid Imagination range to the materials, including the walnut kitchen from Kitchens International and the chocolate brown leather-look Porcelanosa tiles in the master en-suite.

This flow was also enhanced by reconfiguring the layout to create the open-plan living, dining and kitchen space on the garden level, with the three bedrooms (one en suite), an office for Ian (or fourth bedroom) and a shower room upstairs.

While traditionally one might have expected the main living space to be at ground level – as it was originally, where the master bedroom is now – the couple prefer this more relaxed arrangement, particularly as the living-dining-kitchen space leads into the back garden so that Harry, their amiable Labrador, can wander in and out at will. As Jen says: "We like open-plan living; it's just fresh and modern."

This garden level previously comprised a lower hallway and utility area, a poky shower room and a kitchen-dining space where the sitting area is now. The biggest challenge came in scooping everything out and installing the structural support necessary for the open-plan layout.

Likewise, Ian rejigged the floor plan upstairs. The master en suite was created by combining a former bathroom accessed from the hallway with two cupboards, one of which had been accessed from the old sitting-room, the other from the front bedroom. Meanwhile, a former storeroom became the shower room for guests.

The calibre of the fittings in both these spaces speaks volumes about the couple's approach. The basins and vanity units are by Duravit, combined with sculptural 'Love Me' waterfall taps by Crosswater, while the Matki shower enclosures feature Axor Hansgrohe large rain showers. One of Ian's favourite spots is the bath in the en suite, where he can watch television on the waterproof flatscreen TV set into the tiling. Clearly, the couple weren't about to scrimp on the features.

There's a second flatscreen in their bedroom, another in Ian's study and a fourth downstairs, and the integrated technology was key for Ian. A four-zone Opus 300 electrical system controls all the music, TV and DVD content (the music even continues into the garden) with iPod dock integration. Ian turned to his friend Robin Mehta of Technology Consult, who arranged the Opus system, and while such techy features might sound complex, they're worked from a "straightforward, dummy-proof" remote control, says Ian.

The couple opted for timeless design choices throughout, having learned from a previous property they redesigned in Fettes Row with the help of an interior designer. "It was too small a space for what we chose," Jen reflects, recalling the heavy damask wallcoverings and dramatic colour scheme. "It was a learning curve. Coming here we thought, 'We know what we like, let's do it ourselves.'"

There are some unexpected touches. The walnut kitchen, for example, is combined with 80mm Corian worktops. The wall behind the TV in the sitting area is painted in a glossy finish that looks like polished plaster, with directional low-voltage spotlights illuminating the subtle sheen (Ian designed the lighting himself using computer software), while one wall in the master bedroom is painted with broad matt and sheen stripes.

Unusually for a modern living space, there are no wooden floors, although this wasn't a conscious aim at the outset. Rather, the couple liked the counterbalance of the large-profile porcelain tiles in the downstairs bathroom, which has under-floor heating, with deep-pile carpeting elsewhere: "Probably the most indulgent thing we bought, but worth it," says Ian. "We wanted to feel homely and cosy," Jen adds.

The builder, Period House Development Company, turned this property around in six months, and the couple moved in at the beginning of July last year – although the kitchen took another six weeks to complete, during which time they made do with a kettle, a microwave and a panini maker. Ian and Jen visited every evening after work, and Ian is the first to admit that he was very specific about the details, but the results speak for themselves.

There was also the elongated, triangular-shaped garden to consider. Having started as an expanse of concrete and gravel with a handful of trees, the garden is now tiered with integrated lighting washing down the stone walls and highlighting selected trees. This is striking at night. There's also a single garage in Lennox Street Lane, although Ian admits that he rarely takes his car out these days as the central location lends itself to walking.

Although the couple weren't planning to move as quickly, with a baby due in a few months, they're hankering for a detached house. So what ideas will they take with them? They both agree on the bathrooms. "I genuinely have not seen a better bathroom," Ian says of the en suite. "We chose everything we liked for this flat, so I think we'd do it exactly the same again." k

Offers over 645,000 should be made to Murray and Currie on 0131-226 5050 or visit www.murrayandcurrie.com or Rettie & Co on 0131-220 4160 or visit www.rettie.co.uk