An Edwardian townhouse in London gets an infusion of colour and joy from Kate Guinness
When the curtains were installed in the sitting room of this Edwardian house in south-east London the owner sat in front of them and wept. ‘I’d never owned anything so beautiful and grown-up,’ she says. Made from ‘Margot,’ a joyous floral fabric by Fanny Shorter, the curtains are characteristic of the colourful scheme interior designer Kate Guinness has created for this family home.
The owners previously lived in a small, Victorian terrace. It began to feel cramped after the arrival of their twins, but they bided their time and waited for a property to become available on their favourite street. ‘We loved the architecture of the houses, but it is also very quiet and backs onto green space, which is rare for this part of London.’
The top floor of the house they eventually bought had been remodelled, but it was otherwise structurally untouched, with all the original fireplaces and mouldings. Unusually, it came with planning permission to extend into the side return and convert the cellar storage space. The latter, a difficult piece of structural engineering executed by local architect David Hingamp of Archic, has yielded a playroom, guest bedroom and bathroom.
David also opened up the original ground floor, marking the boundary of the reception room from the extension with an elegant brass and timber balustrade, and dividing it from the sitting room with a glazed window. This enabled Kate to create an adult space at the front of the house, which feels cosy and cosseting but isn’t completely shut off from the rest of the downstairs.
Kate was brought on board after construction had started, when the owners began to feel nervous about the decorating aspect of the project, in particular, managing the transition from the Edwardian part of the house to the modern extension.
‘I made one visit to Chelsea Harbour Design Centre and felt completely overwhelmed,’ recalls the owner. ‘We only had three pieces of nice furniture, and the two orange ‘Husk’ sofas by Patricia Urquiola, which I had bought in a moment of madness and we had this big house to fill.’ Without help, she worried the process would be long and frustrating, but also that she would fall back on boring, but safe choices.
An Instagram ‘rabbit hole,’ led her to Kate’s website. ‘I looked at her projects and thought: “Yes. That’s what I want.” What I love about her houses is they are beautifully designed but don’t look designed. They look like they’ve been lived in for years,’ she enthuses. Although the owner and her husband wanted the house to have lots of colour and pattern, and to include mid-century design, they were otherwise happy to surrender Kate’s expertise. ‘I knew that Kate understood our taste, but I was also excited for her to challenge and teach us.’
They did however have a list of practical requests, among them a dining table large enough to seat 10, bedrooms for the twins that had their own identities but were connected, and study. ‘After years working on the kitchen table surrounded by the kids and their toys, I longed for a room of my own in a style that contradicts the challenges of my work,’ says the owner. In response, Kate has designed a fresh and uplifting workspace around a wallpaper by Josef Frank. ‘It genuinely has a positive psychological effect. My colleagues call it their favourite zoom box,’ says the owner.
On the top floor, Kate made additional structural changes, including incorporating part of the landing into the bathroom to create a larger shower. ‘It’s a dark room so we embraced that by choosing rich colours and running the tiles up the pitched ceiling to make it feel dramatic and interesting,’ explains Kate. She also flattened the wall with the chimney breast so the bed could sit more centrally and replaced built-in joinery with free-standing pieces. The owner wanted this space to feel like checking in at a Soho House hotel, so Kate has added a decadent free-standing rolltop bath under the window.
As the owner anticipated, Kate has managed the transition from traditional to modern with aplomb, deftly softening the modern extension with interesting textures, including a wool wall hanging by Els Jennings and sculptural ‘Anders’ pendant light from Pinch, while updating the older part of the house with modern and mid-century pieces, such as the Matthew Cox table and vintage brass pendant light in the reception room. The house is further unified by a meticulously chosen paint scheme that is both sophisticated and serene.
To Kate’s delight, the owners have since added a contemporary art collection to the house, which they assembled with the help of their friend, curator and art advisor Louisa Adam. But no one is more delighted than the owner. ‘The house makes me happy every day. It’s an extraordinary privilege and I still pinch myself.’
Kate Guinness is a member of The List by House & Garden, our essential directory of design professionals. Visit The List by House & Garden.
James McDonald1/14An artwork by David Hockney hangs above the original fireplace, which has been updated with tiles from Balineum. A pair of adjustable ‘Ladder’ shelving units are from Barnby Design keep the room feeling airy and spacious. The ‘Husk’ sofas are form B&B Italia, the ‘Willis’ bench is from Soho Home.com.
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James McDonald4/14The study has a desk long enough to accommodate both owners, should the need arise.
James McDonald5/14A pair of decorative wrought iron chairs from LRNCE (lrnce.com), make the balcony an excellent spot for a post-work gin and tonic.
James McDonald6/14A relaxed blind in ‘Melilla’ by Fortuny and a pretty vintage kantha from Elizabeth van Amerongen (find her on Instagram) combined with a ‘La Rochelle’ roll top bath from The Cast Iron Bath Company give this bedroom a quietly romantic atmosphere.
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James McDonald8/14The otherwise pared-back children’s bathroom is enlivened with bold paint colours, including ‘Atomic Red’ by Little Greene and ‘Shrubby Goldylocks’ by Papers and Paints, plus a pair of bespoke bobbin mirrors by Studio Welby.
James McDonald9/14Blue woodwork, a monochrome rug from Ikea and a cast iron bed from The Cornish Bed Company painted bright yellow, give this room a strong, unfussy look. A ‘Circus Hanging Lamp’ by Javier Herrero Studio is a playful finishing touch.
James McDonald10/14The piano, which was originally dark mahogany, has been decorated by Irish painter Molly van Amerongen.
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James McDonald12/14The chest of drawers, which came from the family’s previous home, has been given a winsome update by decorative artist Tess Newall (tessnewall.com). The twins’ rooms both have floor-length curtains in ‘Kasma’ by George Spencer Designs but in different colourways.
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James McDonald14/14The full-throated colour of the bespoke vanity unit, which is painted in ‘Brinjal’ by Farrow & Ball and has a Calacutta rosato marble top, makes the jewel-like turquoise tiles from The Mosaic Factory sing.
