Adrian Reeman lives with his wife Annette in a regular 1960s Southampton apartment building— but their personal space is anything but ordinary.
Adrian, a 67-year-old chef in the Merchant Navy, has spent the past 30 years transforming their average 2-bedroom apartment into a replica of the Palace of Versailles.
The Palace of Versailles, which was built on the outskirts of Paris for Louis XV, is known for its Baroque art style, exemplifying the architectural concept of “creation by division”. If you’re unfamiliar with the Palace of Versailles, you can take a digital tour here.
The walls, ceilings, fire place, cupboards, and bathroom of Adrian’s have all been completely converted based on this concept. The 67-year-old boasts:
“I’ve got my own palace— just on a much smaller scale.”
Adrian never set out to completely transform the 2-bedroom apartment; he started the project while he was in-between jobs.
With no professional experience in decorating, he began working piece-by-piece, slowly transforming individual objects.
After a while though, he became obsessed. He told the The Telegraph:
“Once I started I knew that I couldn’t stop until I finished— at some points I actually wished I hadn’t started.”
Despite the 30-year length of the project, Adrian acquires most of his materials from second-hand shops and charities, a fact which greatly diminishes his costs.
In fact, Adrian claims that to date, the entire project has only cost him a few hundred pounds
He explained the process to The Telegraph, saying:
“I picked up bits and pieces from charity shops and immediately I could visualize where it was going to go. But I wanted a really high level of detail so I had to buy some special materials to give me the right look. “
A few of Adrian’s repurposed items include cupboards made from stools, tables made from old wooden salad bowls, and metal detailing made from plug prongs.
Adrian’s current project consists of redesigning the bathroom’s toilet. He explains:
“I’m currently working to make the toilet look like it’s made of marble. It’s only a small lavatory, and you can barely turn around in it, but that doesn’t mean you cannot make it look grand.”
Although Adrian has spent the past 30 years remodeling his apartment, if he and Annette decide to move, the entire place must be completely converted back to its original condition.
In regards to this request, Adrian jokes, “But who would want that? It had horrible copper pebble wallpaper!”
If this isn’t an impressive DIY project, then I don’t know what is!
If you’ve been inspired by Adrian’s DIY prowess, be sure to check out Britain’s Weirdest Council Houses, a documentary by Channel 4. It features Adrian’s apartment alongside other unique spaces— including one remodeled into the Sistine Chapel, and another into a baked bean museum.
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