A Lisbon townhouse - an exercise in colour

Renovating a period house is always difficult when it comes to deciding how many of the original features to maintain and as we’re in the middle of working on one ourselves, I’m always interested in other people’s efforts. Private homeowner Filipa Ferreira decided to highlight the space in her three storey townhouse when she imbued it with her own individual sense of colour and décor. The first feature that really interested me was the interior patio. As she doesn't have a garden, I thought it was an ingenious way of making sure she could dine al fresco, so to speak, and it allows her to indulge in a little gardening. The house (featured in Portuguese interior design magazine Maxima Interiors) is in Lisbon and is situated right over the river Tagus. Using colour like this is always a bit daunting but she clearly had a very firm idea of what she wanted the end result and I think it came out perfectly. I just love the way that every room seems to pop off the page at you. This is one person that has banished magnolia for good!