Considering how much they enjoy entertaining, it may seem strange that Ed and Lucy Rigg have swapped their three-bedroom house in East Dulwich for a one-bedroom basement flat in central London. But when you see their friends crowded into the small sunken garden or gathered around the long black dining table in the open-plan living room, it is clear that downsizing has in no way cramped this sociable couple’s style.

“We wanted to be closer in so we could enjoy the galleries, theatres and nightlife and also cut down on the commute,” says Ed, who runs his own fruit-juice company, Eager.

Home is now in a cobbled mews near the open green spaces of Hyde Park – essential because they have three pugs that need an hour’s leg-stretching every morning. “As soon as we walked in, we knew it was the place for us,” says Lucy, but they also had a vision of how they could put the 900sq ft of space to better use.

“One of the first things we did was paint the rear external wall white, to reflect daylight into the living room and kitchen,” explains Ed. “We also put in a new front door, with reinforced, shatterproof glass panels, so there would be some much-needed natural light at the end of the hallway.”

Then the couple called in the builders and, in six weeks, gutted the place and redecorated it. They started by demolishing the dining-room walls to create an open-plan living space. The residual arch, now reinforced with an RSJ, frames the dining area, where they had a bench seat built against the side wall.

The sitting area has two sofas facing each other across a low coffee table. The original bow-fronted fitted cupboards on either side of the fireplace were replaced with thick, open shelves. “The old cupboards were too dominant and made the room seem smaller and darker,” says Ed. Lucy came across a good gilt frame surrounding a badly battered painting and replaced the canvas with mirrored glass to create the regal-looking mirror that now hangs on the wall behind one of the sofas.

The floor throughout the flat was replaced with light lime-washed oak. The kitchen underwent a revamp, with freshly painted doors, new handles and a thick oak worktop, while the basin in the bathroom was replaced with one set into a period-style stand and the walls either painted an intense green or re-tiled in white.

In the bedroom, the recesses on either side of the bed are mirrored to create the impression of space beyond – a trick also used in the sunken garden, where the mirrored end wall makes it appear as if the trellis and climbing plants are twice as abundant as they really are. The benches have seats that lift up to allow access to the cavernous spaces beneath. “We knew we’d have to maximise the storage because, coming from a three-bedroom house to a one-bed flat, it was always going to be a challenge,” says Lucy.

There is more unexpected storage in the hallway. What at first seem to be cupboards open to reveal a utility room with washing machine and dryer, extendable drying rack and shelves for linen and detergents, and a walk-in wardrobe with two rows of hanging rails, stacked wire drawers for shoes and shelves for jumpers.

Decorating a home is all a matter of taste. In Ed’s case, his very particular sense of taste led him to leave his job in advertising to set up his own business. He has applied the same dedication used to find the right fittings and door knobs for his home to sourcing fruit juices aimed at the cocktail market. And now that he lives within walking distance of the pick of the city’s bars and nightclubs, he and Lucy can enjoy the fruits of their labour without the worry of missing the last train home.

www.eagerdrinks.com

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