“Reuse is not a design trend; it’s an attitude, a mindset, and a behavioral approach that isn’t just relevant today— it’s vital,” says Maria Speake. Back in the early 1990s in Glasgow, she and fellow architecture student Adam Hills watched historic buildings being demolished. “The madness of this process wasn’t just about unnecessary waste, it disregarded the common sense that used to underpin construction: valuing materials and craft.”
In response, the couple founded Retrouvius, their now 29-year-old London-based salvage company, that all this time has been leading by example. “In the simplest terms, we rescue materials, furniture, lighting, and fixtures and continue their life,” they write. “Increasingly, we understand our mission as something more fundamental: to enable and inspire reuse, not just as a design preference but as a way of life.”
Adam oversees the reclamation side of the business, and Maria runs the in-house design studio, applying rescued components to inventive remodels (House & Garden UK named her designer of the year in 2019). A recent project that caught our eye is this Georgian townhouse in Notting Hill. It belongs to a successful costume designer with a love of patinated surfaces, old wood, and peace and quiet. Maria and team transformed her quarters into “a country home in the city.”
Take a look.
Photography by Tom Fallon courtesy of Retrouvius.
![retrouvius design london country home in the city tom fallon photo 1](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-1-733x489.jpg)
“It was originally from Somerset,” says Maria of the mantel. “When we first got it—from a wonderful architectural salvage dealer called Marcus Olliff—I tried to put it in a house in Somerset, but our clients thought it was too raw, which is, of course, what we love about it.”
![retrouvius design london country home in the city tom fallon photo 3](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-3-733x1079.jpg)
![retrouvius design london country home in the city tom fallon photo 2](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-2-733x489.jpg)
![the paneled door in the back of the lounge leads to a tiny guest bath. \ 20](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-powder-room-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-11-733x1099.jpg)
![the lounge opens to the dining area and kitchen, which references the costumier 21](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-4-733x489.jpg)
![the cabinets are faced with \18th century marquetry floorboards that came out o 22](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-kitchen-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-5-733x515.jpg)
![this end of the kitchen overlooks a new sunroom. the marquetry cabinet fronts h 23](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-kitchen-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-6-733x894.jpg)
![a tall refrigerator and two fridge drawers are built into the new back stair pa 24](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-kitchen-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-8-733x542.jpg)
![\2\20;the old stair had that vibe of cramped servant\2\17;s stair 25](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-new-back-stair-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-12-733x1100.jpg)
The interior window, she notes, is framed in copper and probably dates to the 1910s: “copper lights are a little more refined and urban than lead lights.”
![the laundry, with it cupboards of reclaimed maple, is a \2\20;wee temple 26](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-laundry-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-9-733x993.jpg)
![the cupboards are inset with a band of sculptural antique dutch cigar molds and 27](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-laundry-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-10-733x1100.jpg)
![in one of the guest rooms, the bed is set in a nook paneled in reclaimed pine c 28](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-built-in-guest-bed-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-13-733x1001.jpg)
![the room has a built in dresser and, just out of the photo, a compact sink from 29](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-built-in-guest-bed-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-14-733x1024.jpg)
![there\2\17;s a steam shower with cedar fittings and moroccan style tadel 30](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-steam-room-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-15-733x1100.jpg)
![the basin is made from an old wood bread trough. the copper fixtures are from w 31](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-steam-room-reclaimed-wood-basin-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-16-733x1100.jpg)
![the master bedroom has limewashed walls and original moldings. the rug is swedi 32](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/retrouvius-design-london-master-bedroom-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-17-733x492.jpg)
![the room pairs two longstanding remodelista favorites: the moroccan pom pom bla 33](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/master-bedroom-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-18-733x1100.jpg)
![centuries and styles mix in the master bath. the tub was in the house, \ 34](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/master-bath-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-19-733x992.jpg)
![an antique english sideboard serves as a washstand. (\2\20;a great place 35](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/master-bath-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-20-733x1099.jpg)
![the zellige tiles are from the mosaic factory: \2\20;they\2\17;re 36](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/master-bath-country-home-in-the-city-tom-fallon-photo-21-733x528.jpg)
Some more projects that make artful use of vintage and found materials:
- Saved from Abandonment: A Historic Hudson Valley Farmhouse Receives the Ultimate Makeunder
- Calm and Collected: At Home with the Duo Behind Aesthetic Movement
- Two London Creatives Shore Up a Tiny Beach House, kea Hack Kitchen Included
N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on March 16, 2020, and has been updated with new links and language.
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