An Interior Designer Shows Us Around Her London Home

The Property

I bought this flat around 10 years ago when I was just starting out in interior design and fell in love with it instantly – not only because of the location (it’s very close to Westbourne Grove) but because of the architecture – specifically the high ceilings and original period features. 

Despite retaining some of these featured during the renovations, we decided the layout didn’t work at all –  choosing to maximise on both space and storage, we set about redesigning the entire space. 

Originally, the kitchen was in a small hallway that led to a single room at the back of the property and onto the garden patio. This back bedroom also came with a tiny bathroom that was so small, getting in and out of the bath was a challenge. 

The Kitchen

The kitchen is where we spend most of our time as a family and where we enjoy socialising, but the flat is small at just 750 sq ft, so we needed to make the most of the storage. We designed the kitchen with joiner Greg Cox and decided to elongate the cupboards to discreetly store all our kitchen items. I wanted to continue the flow of the classical features in the rest of the property – which involved adding detailing to the fronts of the cupboards.
Open shelving also gave us the opportunity to showcase some of our personal items and mix things up. I’m constantly moving things around to make areas to feel fresh and up to date. 

We also put in a Lacanche oven – it was my big buy. Growing up, we only used gas ovens but came across Lacanche when we were renting an Airbnb in St Barths. There and then I decided I needed one for myself. We also added in a country-style sink with an unlacquered antique brass Waterworks tap. I love to mix different eras, and it’s worth taking the time to blend the pieces you buy – it gives so much more character to the design and helps it stand the test of time against an ever growing number of trends. 

Because we like to have people over, it was important to us to have a large dining space. I found the dining chairs at an Indian company called Phantom Hands and teamed them with a bespoke upholstered bench on the other side made by Barton Bespoke. The pendant is an antique I found in a market in Paris. We added some of Fermoie’s beautiful lampshades to give the kitchen some colour, too. 

The Living Space

In the seated area, we wanted to inject some colour and texture to the space, but still keep it clean and contemporary. Being my home, I didn’t want to throw every single design trend at it. It needed to still feel like a sanctuary, so I used a neutral base for the larger furniture pieces and applied tonal colours through the soft furnishings, art and rugs.
I love how art can bring a room together. My father used to take me to lots of galleries in London and New York, so it’s a passion close to my heart. I also had a wonderful art teacher at school who pushed me to apply to Central Saint Martins, so whenever I design a space, it’s important to me to ensure all the artwork sits well with the other pieces in the space. 
 

The larger pieces here are by Henrietta Dubrey and Heath Wae, bought from Edgar Modern and The Dot Project Gallery in London. The smaller pieces I picked up from Alfies Antiques Market, Kempton or even Wimbledon Art & Antiques Fair. The rug is bespoke and the coffee table is from AU Bespoke, who always have the most incredible stone tables for such competitive prices. Alfred Newall made the bobbin pieces, which are such high-quality – they really lend some shape and texture to the room. The mirrored sideboard is actually an old DJ booth and still has its record players. We wanted to make the space feel inviting, too, so we switched two old sofas for the Lazytime sofa from Camerich. Above the sofa is a Serge Mouille wall light was placed deliberately to shine a light onto the artwork above it.

The Master Bedroom

After removing the original bathroom, we were able to finally house a super king bed in this space, as well as some inbuilt joinery. I designed and picked the burr wood veneer, incorporating a floating desk space with hidden drawers to work as a vanity and or office desk when needed. The handles are from Ochre and are wrapped in green leather. 

Our bed was made by Ben Whistler and wrapped in a Weitzner green velvet. The side tables are antique from Brownrigg Antiques in Tetbury, a must-visit if you’re ever in the area. I used a thick natural linen from De La Cuona for the curtains and a sheer behind that billows in the wind. I really love this room as it moves out onto the garden patio – the greenery on the back wall changes throughout the seasons from bright green to yellow to deep red. It’s a lovely space to wake up in.

The Guest Bedroom

We used a lot of colour into the guest room, including Little Greene Livid on the walls. The property has some large windows, so I knew the room could take such a moody colour. The bed was a bespoke design and I had drawers placed underneath so we could take advantage of even more storage.

The antique chest of drawers was sourced from Brownrigg Antiques and the artwork above is by Bonnie and Clyde. The bedside tables were made bespoke by Dogan London, who we used a lot at Soho House. I based the design off some beautiful bedside tables I saw on 1st Dibs and missed out on, so decided to have something similar made. The cushions are from Christina Lundsteen  and the throw on the bed is so luxurious – it’s mohair and from Samuel Tweed. 

 
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Photography by Christopher Horwood