Georgian Terrace Restoration — Widcombe

This three-storey Georgian terrace on Great Pulteney Street in Widcombe is Grade II listed, so every decision — from paint type to plaster repair method — needed BANES conservation officer approval.

The walls had been painted over with modern vinyl emulsion that was trapping moisture and causing the original lime plaster to fail. We stripped this back, repaired blown sections with Cornish lime plaster, and finished with breathable distemper in Farrow & Ball's "Wimborne White" and "Skimming Stone" — colours drawn from the building's original 18th-century palette.

The sash windows had been painted shut with successive coats of modern gloss. We carefully released them, stripped the timber to bare wood, and finished with traditional linseed oil paint that moves with the wood. Original picture rails and cornicing were cleaned with fine glass paper and highlighted in "Pointing" — a warm off-white that flatters the honey-coloured Bath stone sills. The result respects the building's heritage while standing up to modern family life.