Browsing Tag

architecture

Spaces

A MONASTIC OASIS

5th July 2018

When I look at this house, just as a set of photos without any of the accompanying details, I’d never guess that it was located in London. From the choice of materials to the quiet restraint of the design, to details such as the pebbled courtyard garden, I visualise this house in a much less urban setting; a peaceful place away from the hustle of the city.

Yet this house sits on Tiverton Road, between Kensal Rise and Queens Park in London’s NW10, and this ‘quiet’ design offers a respite from the urban environment that extends out beyond it. Currently on the market with The Modern House, this property is described as a ‘monastic oasis’, and I can’t think of a better description for a design as pared back and beautifully simple and thoughtful as this.

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Spaces

HIGHBURY HILL EXTENSION

29th June 2018

I’ve featured Havwoods on Copperline before in this beautiful London apartment from 2016, and I wrote at the time: ‘Every so often an email lands in my inbox and I realise its contents have to be featured…’ and this is another one of those moments. This stunning space features flooring by Havwoods – Block Herringbone Engineered Oak Flooring to be specific, and the warm golden tones of this finish are the perfect backdrop to the black accents and brick textures in this kitchen and dining space in London’s Highbury Hill.

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Architecture

THE GJØVIK HOUSE

19th January 2018

If, like me, you’re already an admirer of the Copenhagen-based Norm Architects – the home of Norm’s co-founder Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen has been a favourite of mine since I first laid eyes on its restrained and elegant interior – then any new project from the practice is going to demand attention. And, as these photos show, the Gjøvik House in Norway is another beautiful example of Norm Architects’ understated approach.

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Spaces

CUBIC STUDIOS

22nd November 2017

Okay, quiz time. What date was the film Notting Hill released: was it 2005, 2002, or 1999? Why am I asking this? Well, because I can’t believe that the correct answer is… a whole 18 years ago and in a different century! If you’ve watched the film, you’ll remember the Travel Bookshop that was owned by Hugh Grant’s character – the scene of the famous “I’m also just a girl, asking a boy…” line. All of which brings me to this apartment – the flat above the shop – that has been redesigned by the Notting Hill-based Cubic Studios.

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Spaces

RUSTON MEWS

17th October 2017

Designer, author and photographer Claire Lloyd is passionate about light – as she writes on her website, ‘Light makes my spirit soar’ – and this is evident in Claire’s approach to each interior project, from her light-filled Greek island home, which was the subject of her 2012 book entitled My Greek Island Home, to this minimal mews house in London’s Notting Hill which Claire redesigned completely (she has since sold the property), photographed here by Nathalie Priem. From her early career working in art direction for magazines including Australian Vogue, to more recent work as an author of two books – her first, Sensual Living, was published in 1998 – Australian-born Claire’s eye for simplicity and refined detailing has resulted in interiors with a beautifully understated and quiet aesthetic.

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Spaces

WEST ANNANDALE STREET

5th June 2017

I’ve seen a number of shop conversions over the years, from a compact split-level studio space in Edinburgh’s Stockbridge area to a fantastic industrial-style loft space by Holyrood Park, and each has demonstrated ingenious ways of dealing with the spatial challenges of working within a former commercial space. How do you create a functional and desirable living space when you have limited light at street and below-street level?

This two bedroom property on West Annandale Street in Edinburgh – which has been marketed by Smart Property with photography by Dave Morris – caught my eye as, when faced with these same challenges, the owners, architect Tim Bayman and Lizzie Elliott, have created a dynamic interior that works both as a home for their family and as a work space for Tim.

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