Decorating Sydney Street

Sydney Street runs northward from the King's Road through the Chelsea-South Kensington border, lined with a varied Victorian and Edwardian streetscape of terraced houses, purpose-built mansion blocks, and independent shops that give this stretch a lively yet residential character. The street is anchored at its southern end by St Luke's Church, a magnificent Gothic Revival structure that lends the street an architectural gravitas entirely in keeping with the quality of surrounding property. Its position straddling the boundary of Royal Borough wards places it within a conservation area where the retention of original architectural detailing is actively encouraged.

Sydney Street's mix of Victorian terraces and Edwardian mansion blocks creates a variety of exterior decorating requirements, from traditional lime-wash preparation on older brick facades to modern masonry coatings on later purpose-built buildings. Interior schemes frequently combine original Victorian cornicing and ceiling roses with contemporary design sensibilities, requiring decorators experienced in working with period plasterwork alongside modern paint systems.