A Victorian house in Hampstead that perfectly balances beauty and practicality

‘It took a bit of time to understand how we were going to work around this narrow, tall building,’ Anna explains. ‘We had to reconfigure the whole house from top to bottom because it was ill-equipped, with poorly-fitted, small storage that couldn’t contain the gubbins that comes with family life.’ This led to the creation of quite an intense technical package, which Anna worked on with a team of trusted tradespeople from Silver Design & Build. ‘The scope for the joinery alone was huge because the client wanted the children to have no cause for throwing coats and bags over the banister. We needed to build in practical and accessible storage everyone would actually use.”

It was in the open plan kitchen dining area at the back of the house that the joinery needed to work the hardest. The clients had specified it as a place where the children could have breakfast, but also as the venue for elegant dinner parties. As such, Anna designed, alongside Devol Kitchens, an island with handy bar stools, as well as a curved banquette that can easily seat between eight and ten people.

The dining table base is from Julian Chichester, with a bespoke oak top made by Anna’s joiners. The fabric used on the banquette is from Rose Uniacke, in the ‘Periwinkle’ colour of her Woven Bottle fabric. The dining chairs are from Pinch, with cushions in ‘North Downs Scalamandre’ by Turnell & Gigon.

The joinery was also absolutely integral to balancing the client's abstract art collection. ‘The family were coming from Norway to London with almost no furniture but this fantastic selection of art that became the jumping off point for much of the project,’ Anna says. Everything, from the height of the banquette in the kitchen and the mantle in the primary bedroom, to the paint selection, was done to accentuate or counter this collection. One of the most exciting examples of this is the large bookcase that spans one wall in the kitchen and sits opposite the largest canvas in the collection. The design of the bookcase is influenced by mid-century principals, chosen both to ‘knock out any newness in the house and to reflect the client's Scandinavian heritage.’

The bolder colour scheme throughout the house–a small departure for the studio–was also response to the dramatic, large scale canvasses the studio was working with. ‘The artworks are pieces of scale and very much informed the colour schemes and style of the rooms,’ Anna says. ‘What we always want to deliver is a home for the clients, so we had to step away from what we have done before, approach things from a slightly different angle. Our classical approach wouldn't work here.’

Then there was the task of putting together a colour palette that would work across the four floors. Anna explains, ‘it was really important that the colours translated from one room to the next.’ Fortunately, the studio found the perfect through-line in the form of a contemporary feeling runner by Sophie Cooney that flows through every floor of the house. ‘The clients saw a sample of it and just fell in love with it. They had to have it, so the runner became instrumental to the scheme because everything in the house needed to call back to it and match the weight of its colour.’

Antique textiles play a big role in most of Anna's projects, and this one was no different. ‘Often, where we felt there was quite a strength of colour, we would layer in fabrics that felt muted.’ In the primary bedroom, a yellow painting by Kate Friend is revealed and opposed by the headboard, which is covered in an antique textile from Susan Deliss. ‘The yellow is really vibrant and we wanted to be able to carry it through the room in subtle ways,’ Anna says. ‘The whole room still feels really soft because, even despite the bold painting, and even though the windows are painted red, the rest of it is quite knocked back.’

A Grace Weaver portrait hangs in the back of the dining room, complemented by walls in ‘Stirabout’ by Farrow & Ball. The curtains are trimmed in an antique trim from Susan Deliss. The armchair is the ‘Jules’ chair from George Smith, upholstered in ‘Cunard’ by Claremont. The floor lamp is from Quindry.

Boz Gagovski

Anna and her team managed to complete this project in just under sixteen months, which she credits to the tradespeople, makers and decorators they worked alongside. ‘You cannot run a successful and efficient job without an amazing contractor. We were really lucky that everyone involved, from Daniel, the site foreman, and Peter, who runs Silver Design & Build, to the electricians and floor stainers, was honest and hardworking, so things really trucked along at speed.’

As the build came to a close, the client's photos, personal effects and luggage were brought over from Norway and unpacked in an install that took just two weeks. ‘Overnight,’ says Anna, ‘There was a real feeling of familiarity right away. It just looked like their home.’

Anna Haines Design | annahaines.co.uk