Despite the commercial element to the house, the clients’ desire was that the interior felt like a home and not like offices. ‘It’s a new age way of thinking – everyone wants beautiful environments,’ explains Rebecca James, co-founder of the studio with her husband, Wale Aderinokun.

‘The townhouse was designed to be inviting, warm and timeless,’ Wale elucidates.  ‘The client wanted the interiors to be pared back and refined, while at the same time embracing contemporary art and design. Our approach was to make the interiors functional and interesting without looking corporate - there are a couple of meeting rooms that needed to dually function as dining rooms. In addition, the principal’s office and reception rooms were designed to feel like residential living spaces.’

The property’s architecture steered the design narrative. ‘The house is narrow, a typical London home in that regard,’ explains Rebecca. ‘I wanted to soften it, which is quite hard in a rectangular house, so I elongated everything to be taller. The curved detail door arch follows through to every floor – it ties in with the rounded sofas and other furniture and is relevant to the light. The architectural elements marry together to create calm.’ And serenity was central to the project’s aesthetic with the emphasis on pared-back and minimal decor.

Rebecca’s vision for the interior encompassed a largely muted backdrop, with the occasional serenely toned statement wallpaper. The backdrops serve as a blank canvas to elegant, timeless materials such as natural stone, rich timbers including rosewood, oak and walnut, and accents of beautiful brass, thoughtfully partnered with designer furniture and vintage pieces that allow the interior ‘to have some soul and not look clinical’.

Sofas and chairs were chosen for their beautiful silhouettes, with easy-on-the-eye yet sumptuous fabrics complementing the shapely seating. ‘I wanted the family to sink into the curved chairs in the sitting room and feel calm, yet not be able to pinpoint exactly why,’ expands Rebecca.

 The elegant furniture rubs shoulders with exquisite artwork that imbues the interior with an art gallery-like aesthetic. ‘There is an interplay of mid-century and contemporary furniture mixed with ultra-contemporary art throughout,’ explains Wale.

An eye-catching artwork set the tone for the whole interior. Rebecca drew on her experience as an artist to help create the property’s seminal piece, a totem pole statue in the sitting area. ‘It was the first thing I drew – everything else was based around it,’ says Rebecca. ‘It was one of the tallest that ceramic artist Nicola Tassie has made. It symbolises that playfulness is key, with the palette - soft blues, creams and Prussian blue - more grown-up.’

That colour palette, combined with soft greys and warm whites, extends throughout the interior. Prussian blue is interjected for judicious moments of drama. In the kitchenette adjoining the meeting room, for instance, the hue provides a juxtaposition to the surrounding lighter spaces. ‘I am very fond of Prussian blue – I am a painter and often use this for shadowing instead of black,’ explains Rebecca. ‘I find it very rich and elegant, and it stands the test of time. Any time there is a darker palette here it comprises Prussian blue. It forms a journey around the home.’

The dramatic narrative extends to the carefully curated powder room in the basement. Designed to elicit the wow factor for visitors, Rebecca imbued this compact space with a jewel box aesthetic, weaving in hues from upstairs and infusing it with references to other rooms. ‘I love a powder room!’ she exclaims. ‘I wanted guests to come upstairs and say “Have you seen the basement? It’s gorgeous.”’ A Zoffany wallpaper hugs the walls, graced by a vintage Fontanta Arte wall light, while the eye is drawn to the curved reeded wood vanity unit. This is elevated by our Style Moderne taps in an unlacquered Antique Gold finish to heighten the jewel box feel. ‘I love Samuel Heath, I have been a huge fan for a long time. Style Moderne is my favourite collection,’ says Rebecca. ‘I was one of the first to use it when it came out. It’s my favourite collection because it has the crossover between classical and modern, and all of the right elements in proportion.’

Style Moderne was also prerequisite a for the principal’s bathroom, which oozes opulence and was designed to stand the test of time. Here, curved doors - a decorative feature throughout the house - lead the way to the sumptuous statement space. The walls, floor and vanity are clad in sublime Calacatta marble (the vanity also has an exquisite reeded marble base). The stone is a nod to health and wellness - the client’s primary business - which instantly evokes an opulent aesthetic. Style Moderne in Antique Brass Matt was selected because it complemented the Calacatta marble and ensured the taps stood out.

The guest bathroom is part of the top-floor suite, along with the master bedroom and a walk-in wardrobe. The palette here is teased through from the bedroom with its soft green oversized wavy headboard and monochrome floral wallpaper echoed with the heavily veined marble cladding of the floor, shower and floating vanity countertop. A roof light coaxes light into the space, which was designed to play with light, while mirrors create the illusion that marble is everywhere.

The meticulous attention to detail was extended to the Landmark Industrial taps and concealed shower fixtures with lathe wheel/knurled lever controls in Urban Brass Matt Lacquered selected for the space. ‘I wanted this pretty bathroom to have a modern edge – the industrialism takes it back from being too twee,’ says Rebecca. ‘I chose the lathes to complement the ridging details seen around the rest of the home. The fixtures look beautiful and amazing.’  And Wale endorses that sentiment. ‘We chose Style Moderne and Landmark products in a number of finishes as they were sophisticated, of high quality and complemented our vision for the spaces. These products are timeless and will stand the test of time.’