A 4 bedroom Edwardian property in Belsize Park, renovated to create a big family space with plenty of light.
Our clients were a couple working in financial services with two young children who had relocated to the UK from France. The couple have African heritage and had collected much loved items of furniture and artwork from years of travel, which became the foundation for the characterful eclectic design they wanted to create.
This residential project was featured in an extensive 10-page article in House Beautiful’s April 2024 issue. Read the full story here.
We opened up the ground floor to make a large open plan kitchen, dining and living area with a boot room to the rear. This allowed us to maximise much needed light from the front of the house, and with the addition of glazed Crittall style doors, light now dances around the whole space, flooding the once dark staircase with natural light.
The bespoke kitchen by HUX features rich velvet blue spray-painted cabinets, a Novy gas burner hob, with each individual burner inset into the worktop stone, and a large American style fridge freezer. The open plan aspect of the design is continued with a custom steel frame hanging display unit, open wine storage and bookshelf to the back of the island.
With such a large space it was important to zone the key areas, which we achieved through a bold use of colour, pattern and statement flooring. Whilst the kitchen is grounded by blue graphic Terrazzo tiles, a classic herringbone oak floor has been used throughout the rest of the house, with well-placed rugs again reflecting the clients’ love of pattern and texture.
The living area includes a custom built, asymmetric offset shelving unit, in black ash veneer from HUX, which showcases the couple’s gathered possessions. Two Roche Bobois sofas add texture and shape, whilst colour and pattern are layered up in textiles and accessories, such as the rug from Jennifer Manners.
Pops of colour are further injected through artworks including 2 paintings by the client’s uncle, which carry huge sentimental value, and striking gold leaf portraiture pieces by Lorna May Wadsworth.
To create continuity across the ground and upper floors, we added vibrancy with the Fitzroy Bright Stair Runner from Roger Oates Design, which leads you energetically upstairs.
The master bedroom has a more serene palette of soft creams and whites with layers of sumptuous textiles and a geometric rug from Jennifer Manners designed in collaboration with Zulufish. We built a panelled stud wall behind the bed to create a separate dressing room and walk-in wardrobe with a floating dressing table.
All joinery from HUX was carefully considered to remain sympathetic to the scheme, with applied beading to match the panelling and hand painted in Paint & Paper Library, Slate IV, Eggshell.
In the bathroom, floor to ceiling porcelain tiles give the illusion of luxury marble and are offset with brass fittings. A vanity unit from Scavolini provides simple but ample storage.
A further guest room and office complete the space with equally energetic walls and colourful accessories.
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