City lights

Views are often central to the appeal of apartment living. In light of this, it makes sense that an interior accentuates, or even echoes, its outlook.

This inner-city apartment, with interior by designer Jane Agnew, is an urban holiday home for its owners. Agnew says their day-to-day home is set in a warmer climate with indoor-outdoor flow and that for this apartment they wanted a total departure from this.

"Perched eleven floors up in the heart of a bustling cityscape, the interiors emphasise its situation," says Agnew. "I favoured muted tones that don't detract from the outlook, instead focusing on pattern and texture both indicative of the detailed urban panorama."

The use of detail and texture also gives the apartment a sense of individual personality. This prevents the holiday apartment from looking like an under-decorated hotel room, lacking a lived-in look.

Size was another focus for the interior designer. Reflective wallpaper, pillars painted in a gloss finish, and the mirrored kitchen splashback all echo the sparkling nature of the city and provide an increased sense of space within the apartment.

"Every centimetre of floor space is valuable," Agnew says. "Scale is a factor and I custom designed the furniture to work within the parameters. For example, the sofa was designed to fit snugly into its allotted space."

The designer selected a round coffee table, two round occasional tables and a circular dining table, in part because their shape also allows for easy movement though the interior.

A feature lounge chair and the dining chairs all swivel to accommodate easy movement within the space around them.

"The clients have a more classic sensibility in their main home, but gave me carte blanche for this interior," says Agnew. "The result is urban, and decidedly modern."

Story by: Charles Moxham