Interior and exterior confidence
Create Academy has been such a great resource. I'm in the middle of renovating a bungalow with a very large garden and the courses have offered a wealth of inform...
Harvey
Jun 10, 2026
Designing with Salvaged and Reclaimed Materials
with MARIA SPEAKE — Reclaimed Materials Interior Designer
Lesson 27 of 34
Subscribe to watch
For the final part of the course, you’ll be joining Maria at another project of hers, a townhouse in London. It is architecturally different to what she has shared with you so far, and is much more traditional in style.
Welcome to another project of ours, a townhouse in London. It is architecturally different from what I have shared with you so far and is much more traditional in style.
Their small size means they are easy to work with and use within a variety of settings, including rooms that are on the smaller or narrower side.
The scale of a parquet brick also allows it to be laid in many different variations. The laying pattern can have a big impact on how a space feels, so in this room, we used a staggered brick bond laying pattern to broaden the width of the room while also creating a relaxed atmosphere.
Leftover parquet tiles can also be used as a skirting detail when laid horizontally against the wall around the edge of the room.
We were upgrading all of the windows and glass doors in the building and so decided to repurpose the old glass doors that went out onto the terrace and turned them into internal pocket sliding doors.
Get the full workbook, video lessons, and more with a Create Academy subscription.
Subscribe to access the full workbookAlready a member? Sign in to watch
491 reviews
Read moreCreate Academy has been such a great resource. I'm in the middle of renovating a bungalow with a very large garden and the courses have offered a wealth of inform...
Harvey
Jun 10, 2026
Absolutely love Create Academy! The instructors are extremely informative, and it is beautifully filmed. Create Academy is great value for money and plan on renew...
SG
May 31, 2026
Butter's creativity is stunning! Her ability to incorporate brilliance in small gardens is magical!
Carla
May 30, 2026
The best adventure. I like all the courses, but my favorite are both Rita Konig interior design courses and Anna Jones. Excellent!
Karolina Kluczewska
May 20, 2026
Create Academy has been such a great resource. I'm in the middle of renovating a bungalow with a very large garden and the courses have offered a wealth of information to dive into and explore new ideas. I'm...
Harvey
Jun 10, 2026
Absolutely love Create Academy! The instructors are extremely informative, and it is beautifully filmed. Create Academy is great value for money and plan on renewing my subscription yearly because there are ...
SG
May 31, 2026
Butter's creativity is stunning! Her ability to incorporate brilliance in small gardens is magical!
Carla
May 30, 2026
Your Instructor
Reclaimed Materials Interior Designer
Named interior designer of the year by House & Garden, Maria Speake co-founded Retrouvius in 1993 and leads its award-winning design studio. Her work reimagines salvaged and reclaimed objects from hardwoods to textiles into richly textured, liveable pieces. With three decades of practice, she’s helped put thoughtful reclamation at the centre of contemporary interior design.
Access to all courses