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THE DIGEST
Inside Ali Childs’ East London Home: Vintage Finds, French Influences & Family Living
Interior designer Ali Childs welcomes Vinterior into her thoughtfully renovated Victorian terrace in East London, where vintage furniture, reclaimed materials and playful colour palettes create a warm, characterful family home inspired by Parisian living.
Ali Childs has a way of decorating that feels entirely instinctive. In her East London Victorian terrace, vintage pieces, inherited furniture and travel finds sit together effortlessly, creating a home that feels warm, relaxed and deeply lived in.
The founder of Studio Alexandra moved into the house with her husband a few years ago, undertaking a major renovation almost immediately. The couple extended the kitchen, converted the loft and opened up the ground floor, transforming the compact Victorian terrace into a sociable family home designed for everyday life, long dinners and plenty of guests.
At the centre of it all is Ali’s love of vintage. Not in a themed or overly curated way, but as a natural approach to building a home with personality. Throughout the house are pieces she’s owned for decades: a dining table she’s had since she was 20, university-era G Plan side tables, childhood kitchen chairs still marked with Tippex doodles and a vintage Laura Ashley mirror that’s followed her since her teens.
It’s this sense of history that gives the interiors their charm. Nothing feels too polished or too precious. A vintage chair upholstered in green mohair sits happily with traces of family life still clinging to the fabric. Well-worn lamps from Heals cast a soft ambient glow across rooms filled with books, art and collected objects. Every piece feels chosen because it means something.
There are subtle references throughout the house to the years the family spent living in Paris. Terracotta tiles, vintage French furniture, tongue-and-groove panelling and softly layered colours give the interiors a relaxed continental feel. Even the palette itself - pistachio green, dusty pink, oxblood and warm neutrals, was inspired by a restaurant interior Ali once came across and couldn’t forget.
“I love the way furniture shows its life story with you”
Ali Childs
Colour is handled with the same effortless confidence throughout. Burgundy tones subtly reappear between rooms, soft greens run through upholstery and joinery, while unexpected flashes of blue stop everything from feeling too predictable. Ali describes it as wanting spaces to feel cohesive “but not too matchy-matchy” and that perfectly sums up the home’s appeal.
What makes the house especially interesting is how naturally everything sits together. Sicilian ceramics collected on family travels live alongside Paris flea market finds, inherited furniture and Vinterior vintage pieces. Nothing competes for attention, but every object brings something to the story of the home.
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