{"id":22045,"date":"2023-08-07T12:11:50","date_gmt":"2023-08-07T11:11:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goodhomesmagazine.com\/?p=22045"},"modified":"2023-08-14T14:13:32","modified_gmt":"2023-08-14T13:13:32","slug":"stylish-split-level-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goodhomesmagazine.com\/home-tours\/stylish-split-level-home\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018It feels like a Mediterranean retreat here\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

After years living in London as a student at The Royal College of Art then a film and TV production designer, Luana Hanson decided to sell the Victorian terraced house in Twickenham she shared with her 14-year-old son, and return to her native Manchester. \u2018I\u2019d always enjoyed coming back up here for work,\u2019 explains Luana, who has designed sets for productions including BBC\u2019s Last Tango in Halifax<\/em>, as well as winning a Royal Television Society Award for her work on Channel 4 drama It\u2019s a Sin<\/em>. \u2018There are more work opportunities here now than ever before, especially in TV, so I was happy to move back up north for a new lifestyle,\u2019 she says. \u2018I wanted somewhere similar to Twickenham with a sense of community and good transport links to the city.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Luana loves the simplicity of the kitchen, with a favourite canvas of Porthmeor beach by her mum on the wall. \u2018I\u2019d like to eventually change the worktops to quartz, adapt the island to create a breakfast bar and remove the extractor fan, adding one flush to the ceiling,\u2019 she says. Photo: Katie Lee<\/p><\/div>\n

Time for a change<\/h3>\n

In her bid to find the ideal house Luana, who also runs an interior design practice (luanahansoninteriors.co.uk<\/a>), viewed 18 properties. \u2018I viewed 65 potential homes when I lived in London, so to me it wasn\u2019t that many!\u2019 she admits. \u2018The market was very buoyant though, so as soon as something came up for sale, it was being snapped up straight away.\u2019 <\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually Luana found a modern three-bedroom eco home with solar panels in a suburb of south Manchester that was perfect. \u2018I loved the open-plan, split-level layout, and it was full of light, which was so important to me,\u2019 she explains. \u2018Plus, it\u2019s very green around here; there are 70 acres of meadows just down the road where you can go walking.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

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Left: Off the kitchen is a door leading to another small patio area, where Luana sometimes has breakfast. \u2018Along with the rear decked patio, there\u2019s also a little roof terrace, so it\u2019s nice having three different outside spaces\u2019, she says. Right: The glass balustrade and open-tread stairs enable plenty of borrowed light to come through the large windows at the rear. \u2018I picked a classic Scandi design table by Hay and teamed it with chairs from John Lewis & Partners that won\u2019t date.’ Photos: Katie Lee<\/p><\/div>\n

Personalising the space<\/h3>\n

After tackling all the DIY snagging jobs during lockdown alongside her busy job, Luana has gradually worked her way around the house, replacing the bedroom carpets and re-painting the white walls with a combination of natural stone shades. And by opting for contrasting dark navy feature walls in the living room, kitchen and bedrooms, her cherished possessions and artwork can really sing.\u00a0 ‘<\/span>My style is modern, clean, uncluttered and minimalist, but with an eclectic twist,\u2019 says Luana. \u2018I\u2019m inspired by everything from magazines and Instagram to art galleries and exhibitions, and I often get ideas when I\u2019m out recceing for shoot locations and looking inside people\u2019s houses.\u2019<\/span><\/p>

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A dark feature wall painted in Dock Blue by Little Greene makes Luana\u2019s artworks \u2013 including a framed glass box of memorabilia found in her late father\u2019s sculpting studio \u2013 stand out, while creating a contrast with the lighter faux-suede sofa from Habitat. \u2018I like a bold pop of colour, so the pink velvet cushion from John Lewis & Partners works well,\u2019 she says. Photo: Katie Lee<\/p><\/div>\n

Displaying old and new<\/h3>\n

Dotted around the house are several pieces with special meaning created by Luana\u2019s late father, a sculptor who was head of studio at Madame Tussauds. They include a bronze model of Luana\u2019s head from when she was six, and her son when he was eight. There are also coastal scenes by Luana\u2019s mum, a painter and sculptor who lives in St Ives, as well as film and TV memorabilia from various projects. \u2018I\u2019ve framed some of Gary Oldman\u2019s story boards, which he gave me as a thank you present when I worked on his film Nil By Mouth<\/i>,\u2019 she says. \u2018And I have a cast of Alfred Hitchcock\u2019s hands from 1979 that my dad was involved in creating, which I plan to put up in an alcove.\u2019 There\u2019s also a gold painting in the living room created as a test piece when Luana was designing Rifat Ozbek\u2019s London Fashion Show in 1993. \u2018We then gold-leafed an enormous backdrop for his catwalk show, in which Naomi Campbell, Yasmin Le Bon, Linda Evangelista and Cindy Crawford were all modelling,\u2019 she recalls.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Left: The wood burner was already in situ but Luana has painted behind to accentuate it. \u2018I created the artwork myself many years ago from leftover paint, and it fits perfectly in this space,\u2019 she says. Right: A trio of pendants from Tala Lighting make the most of the ceiling height and complement the glass balustrade. \u2018I love the unusual split-level layout,\u2019 says Luana. \u2018It\u2019s what originally drew me to the house\u2019. Photos: Katie Lee<\/p><\/div>\n

Choosing timeless pieces<\/h3>\n

Next, Luana wants to add more fitted wardrobes in the bedrooms and replace the wooden fencing at the front with glass balustrades. However, she\u2019s not one for impulse buys or wastefulness. \u2018You might want things, like an outdoor kitchen for instance, but you don\u2019t actually need one,\u2019 she says. \u2018We live in a world of endless consumption, but I try to buy classic pieces that won\u2019t date and keep them for a long time. I\u2019ve had the Habitat sofa for about 25 years, for example, and the coffee table was originally maroon, but I\u2019ve painted the top in the same stone colour as the walls.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

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Left: Luana picked up the pair of Egon Schiele art prints at the Pompidou Centre on a trip to Paris when was 18, opting for a simple monochrome pendant light from Amazon with a Tala bulb to complete the look. Right: A long made-to-measure shelf provides a spot for an ever-changing display of prints and family photos. Luana has painted the bottom half using Off-Black by Farrow & Ball, which makes her bed from The White Company stand out, and the bee motif on the Timorous Beasties cushion is a symbol of Manchester. Photos: Katie Lee<\/p><\/div>\n

Life in a new city<\/h3>\n

Having started an interior design business in London, Luana is keen to share her expertise with homeowners in Manchester too. \u2018My job had taken me to 18 different countries, and it was difficult juggling the travelling and long hours expected in TV and film,\u2019 she explains. Her top tips include keeping a project diary, getting a detailed breakdown for any quote, never selecting a paint colour under artificial light and <\/span>always having a contingency fund of around 20%. <\/span>\u2018You only have to watch Grand Designs<\/i> to know that every project goes over budget!\u2019 she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Left: Luana has had the Habitat metal bed in the guest room since she was a 19-year-old student. \u2018I love their furniture,\u2019 she says. \u2018We live in a world of endless consumption, but I try to buy classic pieces that won\u2019t date and keep them for a long time.\u2019Right: Trailing plants bring verdant freshness and a softer element to the monochrome bathroom, which features wall-hung fittings to make the space feel bigger. Photos: Katie Lee<\/p><\/div>\n

Luana has no regrets about moving and the new lifestyle her home affords her. \u2018It\u2019s given me space to entertain, an office to create in, plus it\u2019s near the hustle and bustle of a lively, trendy street,\u2019 she says. \u2018I do tend to get itchy feet, and would love to go travelling for a year in a camper van, but I can always rent this place out if I do.<\/span><\/p>

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