Eclecticism over uniformity

Interior design by Angel O'Donnell

From the designer:

Project brief

To breathe new life into a well-loved and well-lived-in family home – what an opportunity. 

Far from being a blank canvas, fresh and unadorned, family homes have history and emotional resonance. 

And in the case of this home, a bounty of Edwardian features, too. 

So, naturally, we strove to enhance what this beautiful property already had to offer.

It needed to remain feeling friendly, welcoming and family-oriented – but with a renewed spirit, ready for its next chapter.

Our manifesto was ‘eclectic not uniform, considered not conspicuously designed'. 

This was about achieving a timeless elegance – nothing faddist, just fabulous in a homely and relaxed way.

But we couldn’t achieve this with aesthetics alone. 

This project was also about reconfiguring rooms, improving flow and functionality, and giving sections of the house a new purpose and identity.

Meeting the brief

Edwardian fireplaces were brought to life with new tiles and hearths. 

Decorative mouldings were reinvigorated with fresh paints. 

Cracked stained glass windows were renewed. 

A damaged Everhot stove was restored. 

And key pieces of furniture were reupholstered in contemporary fabrics to give them an editorial edge.

We also considered the needs of today’s family. 

People’s tastes and work-life dynamics have evolved spectacularly over the past few years. 

Broken plan living has made a comeback, especially among parents who work from home two or three days a week.

We’ve re-learned the value of having separate rooms, of not seeing the detritus of daily life – toys, paperwork, the washing up – all in one place.

So we kept the living room and kitchen separate – but still managed to expand the latter by knocking through into an old-fashioned drying room. 

This gave us an extra south-facing window, lots of natural light, and more space for worktops, cupboards and even a good-sized larder. 

Materials include stone, solid wood, and sleek woven-cord seats for a smart but homely look and feel.

An unused third reception was turned into a dining room. 

We chose this room because it’s west-facing – and we loved the idea of people sitting down to dinner as the sun sets and bathes everything in golden light.

Then, to give our family more useable space on the upper floors, we repurposed two of the guest rooms, making one a study and the other a dressing room.   

We decided to colour block the interiors so that each room would evoke a different mood.

• Warm and enveloping in the rich-red dining room.
• Cosy and inviting in the pale-biscuit entrance hall, living room and stairwell.
• Soft and calming in the putty-pink principal bedroom.
• And cool and refreshing in the off-white kitchen.

In the living room, a new pillowy sofa has been paired with two vintage Jindrich Halabala armchairs. 

These have been reupholstered in fabrics of densely embroidered leaves and moss-green velvet. 

The sculptural swoop of their bentwood arms contrasts nicely with the softer pieces in the room. 

Other vintage finds include a multi-coloured Moroccan Berber rug and two Italian-mirrored side tables.

For added pops of colour against the biscuity base palette, we created a gallery wall with collectible artworks by New Wave visual artist Julian Opie, and renowned figurative painter Eileen Cooper RA.

There’s an authenticity to all these pieces, a provenance and craftsmanship that feels deeply reassuring. 

They, much like the house itself, will live on for another hundred years at least.

Playful elements abound in the loft room – from the abundant foliage of an Arts and Crafts headboard to a pleated lampshade, striped bolster cushion, spearmint throw, and red bedside with bobbin-like legs.

The feel-good feelings continue in the next guest bedroom with rainbow-like arches of rust velvet, sprouting flower motifs on ceramic lamps, and animated squiggles on custom-made curtains. 

Even the abstract, by Royal Academician Ian McKeever, exudes a fun energy that unites all the seemingly disparate shapes and patterns in the room.

Additional considerations not addressed in the brief

The principal ensuite took a bit of figuring out. 

It was a good size, but the previous owners had tried to cram in too much. 

So we gutted it and started from scratch. 

After removing a bath, a bidet, and a stud wall that concealed .55m² of unused space, we found that we had lots of room for a walk-in shower and double vanity. 

That’s the thing about good design, it can seemingly magic space from nowhere and radically improve the flow and functionality of a room.

The bedroom also needed a rejig. 

While large, it contained a surprisingly narrow double bed tucked away behind the main door. 

Instinctively, we wanted to place it diagonally opposite against the chimney breast, but this can often look awkward. 

So we created a half-height upholstered wall to stretch the full length of the room. 

This did four things: disguise the chimney breast, melt away the nooks either side, amplify the generous dimensions of the space, and provide a sumptuous backdrop for a super king with large bedside tables and lamps. 

This simple design move achieved so much.

Sustainability

Looking back on it, our motto could have been ‘Replace as little as possible – revamp as much as possible'.

This project was all about preserving and elevating what this extraordinary family home had to offer. 

From the refurbishment of original fireplaces, decorative mouldings and stained-glass windows to the upcycling of furniture and window treatments, nothing went to waste.

Upcycling furniture is always satisfying, especially when the pieces are well-made classics that deserve a new lease of life. 

Earlier, we mentioned the Halabala armchairs – they’re a 1930s design, sculptural and innovative, perfect for reviving.

We contemporised them with new upholstery – and now they look brand new.

We also upcycled our homeowner’s daughter’s old curtains, which featured a cute bunny rabbit motif along the bottom. 

As the material was good quality, we chose to keep it and cover the design in an expressive, multi-coloured crewelwork fabric. 

We then used the same fabric to create a large bolster cushion for the bed. 

This simple modification transformed a child’s pattern into a sophisticated Arts and Crafts statement suitable for any age and gender.

Products used

Hallway

Cog-shaped mirror – Liang & Eimil; Green finger tiles – Tiles Direct – Green finger tiles; table – Vinterior; spot table – Anthropologie; chair – Soho Home; abstract art – Georgia Stoneman; Biscuit-coloured paint – Little Greene Company

Living room 

Sofa – Andrew Martin; armchairs – Vinterior; fabric for armchairs – Romo; mirrored side tables – 8 Holland Street; rug – Nain Trading; side table – Ecco Trading; lamps – Soho Home; Biscuit-coloured paint – Little Greene Company

Kitchen

Table – Kave Home; chairs – Mobelaris; commissioned portrait of owner's dog – Catherine Reed 

Dining room 

Dining table design – Angel O’Donnell; dining chairs – Liang & Eimil; sideboard – House of Twenty; console – Graham & Green; lamps – Visual Comfort; Antler Chandelier – David Hunt; log burner – Chesneys

Principal bedroom

Bed and headboard design – Angel O’Donnell; bed and headboard fabric – Warwick; bed and headboard maker – Dan Green; bedside table – Theodore Alexander; lamps – Visual Comfort; lithographs by G.W. Bot – Georgia Stoneman; red paint – Mylands 

Principal ensuite

Double vanity design – Angel O’Donnell; double vanity maker – Dan Green; Bobbin mirror design – Angel O’Donnell; wall lights – Pooky; brassware – Lefroy Brooks; marble mosaic tiles – Topps Tiles; green shower tiles – Minoli; Putty-pink paint – Farrow & Ball

Study

Desk – Soho Home; Charles Eames desk chair – Retrouvius; desk Lamp – Visual Comfort; Green paint – Mylands

Loft guestroom

Headboard design – Angel O’Donnell; headboard maker – Dan Green; headboard fabric – GP & J Baker; striped bolster – Matches; bedside table – Oka; bedside lamp – Pooky; ceiling shade – Artisans & Adventurers

Second guest room 

Headboard design – Angel O’Donnell; headboard fabric – Kirkby Design; headboard maker – Dan Green; curtain and bolster cushion design – Angel O’Donnell; curtain and bolster cushion fabric – Harlequin; curtain and bolster cushion maker – Audrey Johns; bedside lamp – Pooky; bedside table – Soho Home; abstract by Ian McKeever – Georgia Stoneman; Grey-green paint – Farrow & Ball

Story by: Trendsideas