The Old Mortuary was converted from a single story Chapel of Repose, where people viewed their loved, or not, one, and a back work room, to a two-story extension attached to our existing cottage. The dimensions and style of the mortuary are slightly different to those of the cottage. We decided to maintain the utilitarian/industrial, albeit on a small scale, nature of the conversion. We wanted to replicate a concrete finish on the walls. This can be hideously expensive but our builders, Superfit, worked creatively to give us the finish we wanted in a more economic way. The result is beautiful and very hard wearing.
The full story of the conversion will be a whole other story, one day.
Hoi An is a beautiful small city in Vietnam. I took this shot of Tran Phu last week, after rain and nightfall. Hoi An is famed for its tailors, Japanese merchant houses and tea warehouses. All of which are on this street. I spent happy hours drinking tea in the most peaceful tea house , Reaching Out on Tran Phu and had some amazing clothes made at AoBaBa on the same street.
theoldmortuary.design takes its name from our home. We recently redeveloped an old, unused undertakers building. We bought the building unseen as the keys to the back portion had been lost long ago. Before we actually got in the building I had a romantic notion that we would find artefacts not dissimilar to the beautiful bottle here, which I actually photographed at Petersham Nurseries, Surrey. The truth was somewhat different.
theoldmortuary.design 