COUNCIL
THE WISHLIST
ART & DESIGN
90 Years of English Decoration
Celebrating its 90th anniversar y, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler will be holding a selling exhibition with decorative artist Lucinda Oakes, including original watercolours, and floral plinths in the Pimlico showroom, by Oakes. Lucinda, daughter of former Colefax director the late George Oakes, cites him as her greatest influence. sibylcolefax.com; lucindaoakes.com
The Art of the Game
Honouring the game of chess, the exhibition fuses art with strategy, presented by luxury game designers Purling. Adding a splash of colour, find interpretations of the checkered board and those all-important pieces, pictured above. 7-13 October purling.com
EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS
Battersea Affordable Art Fair
Find the world's leading UK and international galleries all in one place this autumn with prices from £50 to £7,500, pictured below. This half term, spark children's imaginations with Family Mornings on the 19th and 20th. 16-20 October
affordableartfair.com
White Rabbit Red Rabbit
Created by Nassim Soleimanpour, the captivating theatrical experience comes to London’s @sohoplace for the first time. Performers including Michael Sheen, Catherine Tate and Jonathan Pryce will take to the stage with no preparation or director as they open a sealed envelope and commence their improvised performances. Opens 1 October sohoplace.org
LAPADA
Returning to Berkeley Square, the LAPADA fair brings together an opulent range from the world of art, design and antiques. With some of the finest dealers and galleries from the UK and beyond exhibiting, whether you’re a fan of contemporary or heritage, there is something to suit all. 22-27 October
lapadalondon.com
ON STAGE
Oedipus
The Sophocles play has been newly adapted by Robert Icke. With Mark Strong in the role of Oedipus and Lesley Manville as Jocasta, this Wyndham's Theatre production takes in an election night, with polls predicting a landslide, pictured above Opens 4 October oedipustheplay.com
Shifters
The beautifully written romantic comedy centred around Dre and Des, played by Tosin Cole and Heather Agyepong. After Des leaves, the two reconnect years later as adults, where they reflect upon their teenage memories and ponder whether fate has brought them back together for a reason. Written by Benedict Lombe. Until 12 October shifterstheplay.co.uk; thedukeofyorks.com
Turn of the Screw
Inspired by the twisted gothic Henry James novella, the dark operatic score will haunt your Halloween. The story unravels through flashbacks of a young governess, traumatised after caring for two orphaned children in a remote country house. From the English National Opera. 11-31 October eno.org
The Real Thing
Starring Bel Powley as Annie an actress, and James McArdle as Henry, a playwright, the comedy written by Tom Stoppard dives into the layers of their relationship with each other, which started as an affair. Until 26 October oldvictheatre.com
FOOD AND DRINK
Royal Afternoon Tea
The Elizabethan Afternoon Tea is inspired by the legacy of the late Queen Elizabeth II. Served on the finest Wedgewood English bone china, try delightful sandwiches including smoked salmon and caviar Hamilton Place parklane.intercontinental.com
Harry’s
The latest Harry’s in Victoria promises Italian favourites in a Venetian-inspired setting. Pop in for all- day dining – indulge in cicchetti, pasta, risotto, or a classic bellini or negroni cocktail. Grosvenor Gardens harrysdolcevita.com
Canton Blue
Join the Cantonese fine-dining restaurant in The Peninsula London, for its next wine club, hosted by Château Montrose. The Wine and Dine evening will include a multi-course dinner, below Grosvenor Place peninsula.com
Blue Boar
Find autumnal warmth in the heart of Westminster at the Blue Boar pub. With a menu from Sally Abé featuring British classics with a twist, including wild garlic and potato soup, coronation chicken scotch egg and crispy Berkshire pork belly. Westminster blueboarlondon.com L
LOOK AHEAD
NAS
Celebrating 30 years of his debut album Illmatic, American rapper Nas has added an extra night at Royal Albert Hall, after the 15th sold out.
Painting a vivid picture of growing up in New York in the 1990s and setting a new storytelling standard, it has been deemed one of the greatest records across any genre of music. The album counts Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest as one of its producers. 16 November royalalberthall.com
HAMPTON COURT
The time of year to get your skates on has come again. On the palatial grounds of King Henry VIII's home, slip and glide your way through the ice rink this winter season whether you're new or expert level. Opens 22 November hamptoncourt palaceicerink.co.uk
PUCCINI
Celebrate the centenary year of Italian composer Giacomo Puccini with three of his works, as performed by the Chelsea Opera Group in Sloane Square's Cadogan Hall. 2 November cadoganhall.com
HOME The story of
INTERIOR DESIGNERS RELISH THE CHALLENGE OF WEAVING THE RICH TAPESTRIES OF THEIR CLIENTS’ HERITAGES INTO LONDON HOMES, DISCOVERS TALLULAH RUSHAYA
MURAL IDYLL
This page: The dining room of Maya Salfati’s Hampstead project harmoniously blends contemporary British furnishings and interior design with the eastern flourish of a woodland wall mural painted in the style of an Indian miniature painting
The evolution of a home ’s interior can be a distinctive stamp of creativity, fusing cultural elements into its canvas. In London in particular, a melting pot of heritages can spark unique designs , w hether marr ying Indian roots and Japanese minimalism, Scandinavian simplicity w edded with West African decorative touches, or weav ing Italian -American and Pakistani backgrounds. The result? A wonderful blend of tribal motifs that come together to create a home that ’s timeless yet progressive.
THE TEA HOUSE, House of Sui Sui houseofsuisui.com
An arts and crafts-style former artist’s studio designed in the early 1900s in north London has endured and e volved into contemporary residence s. Creative director and founder of House of Sui Sui, Melissa Bolivar was tasked with marrying Indian roots with minimalist Japanese design for a couple wanting to make their mark on this home. Using their vivacious wedding photographs as design inspiration, the resulting interior encapsulates the spirit of celebration.
The show-stopping living room features bespoke joinery, including Indian lattice details to frame art of the Kiso Mountains by de Gournay. Due to the originality of the concept, Melissa enjoyed designing and executing the lattice immensely. The home is a symphony of colour and texture – the dining room has been styled with chairs from Soho Home, a pendant light from Nkuku and a fabric bench from Tiger Mountain by Dedar. Meanwhile, in the master bedroom, a gold gilded de Gournay painting of cherry blossoms is the centrepiece against the wall’s powder-pink hue and plush velvet headboard.
EAST IS EAST
Clockwise from top:
For Melissa Bolviar, designing the Indian lattice joinery was one of her project highlights; Japanese cherry-blossom pink was the starting point for Bolivar’s clients’ bedroom; vibrant colour, modern furniture and classic materials line the Hampstead home of Maya Salfati’s Hampstead client
HAMPSTEAD, Maya Salfati Designs mayasalfati.com
D esigner and studio founder Maya Salfati envisioned “a harmonious blend of contemporary design”. Tasked with blending British flair with Indian influences to reflect her client’s heritage, Maya sought bespoke elements such as a mural and custom-built furniture. “Traditional British design was represented through classic materials like wood, marble, rattan, and brass , along with bespoke architectural details , such as wall panelling and arches,” she says.
“Subtle Indian influences were introduced with elements like the hand-painted mural in the dining room, featuring a mountain landscape in the style of Indian miniature paintings.” Maya turned to fi ne -art printer King & McGaw, the Romo Group at Jane Clayton for fabrics, and Lewis & Wood for wallpaper. Richness was added via vintage decorative pieces for a sense of history.
Dark green and rust accented with black and chrome combined with modern, shapely furniture created cohesion.
“COLOUR IS SO IMPORTANT TO ME”
Anyone who has entered the Hurlingham Club from its back entrance on Broomhouse Lane will have noticed a striking local landmark. Set on the opposite side of the road from the private members’ club in Fulham, the gothic revival-style property stands out as a decorous jewel in a streetscape of modest low-rise flats. It was built as a “ragged school” – one for destitute children – in 1855 and later converted into an open-air school for those with TB, then a youth club before eventually falling into disrepair. This year, the Grade II-listed building, with a sympathetic extension added at the rear, has re-opened as a 32-room
assisted living residence, KYN Hurlingham.
To match the elegant exterior, the team appointed the celebrated decorator Nina Campbell to design the interiors. “It was such an exciting project to work on,” explains Nina, who is also collaborating with the group on other projects, including a KYN Kensington, opening in 2027. “To begin with, it was wonderful to have the opportunity to work on a beautiful building that had been a real mess and bring it back to life.”
Her design approach started from the premise that anyone moving in should feel like they had gone to stay as a guest in a beautifully decorated country house, rather than abandoning a much-loved family
home for somewhere less familiar or less comfortable. “Behind the scenes, everything needs to work for those who need help. To achieve that, we discussed everything with specialists, including a dementia consultant. I was constantly learning new things, like, for example, that herringbone carpets were a no, as were rugs. It was up to us to decorate around these practical considerations.”
Nina’s tactics included designing oversized headboards to distract the eye from any rails around the bed and appointing the art consultant Adam Ellis to curate the pictures and paintings. “No one ’s faced with rows of generic prints of horses; all the passages are unique.” Scattered around the building
PERFECT PRINTS From left to right: Nina outside her new Pimlico Road shop; KYN Hurlingham’s revived Great Room; the gothic revival building’s ornate exterior; one of the interior designer’s richly patterned bedroom spaces
CREATING A SPACE THAT FEELS ABOVE ALL LIKE COMING HOME IS THE STARTING POINT FOR ANY SCHEME DECORATED BY
NINA CAMPBELL, WHO TELLS ARABELLA YOUENS ABOUT HER LATEST PROJECT IN PARSONS GREEN
are different rooms for residents to enjoy, including the dining room, which has been decorated in a large-scale wallpaper by Lewis & Wood and a coral-coloured library with its card table and bookcases stocked by Heywood Hill. “Colour is so important to me , and this one is particularly uplifting.”
Eschewing the contemporary hues of brown and cream that dominate London new-build interiors comes naturally to Nina. “I know colour and pattern are now back in fashion, but I would have taken the same approach had I decorated this space 20 years ago, when minimalism was supposedly all the rage. When I start on a project, I start at the front door and imagine the colours going
through the house and blending.” It’s the approach she’s employing on other projects which range from a property in Jordan to a large house on the coast in Maine – the second in the same location – and a 1930s mansion in Wales that was once home to JRR Tolkien. “It’s my first time getting to know the country, which is ruggedly beautiful.”
With the exception of a brief foray “north of the park”, home has always been in and around Knightsbridge and Chelsea. “The first house I remember was in Lowndes Square where an owl used to hoot at night, a sound I found rather terrifying. It proved early on that I could never really live in the countryside full time.” Today, she lives just
off the Fulham Road and has recently opened a shop on Pimlico Road , saying goodbye to her long-standing Walton Street premises. This stock s her range of fabrics, furniture and homeware pieces. Recently, she has started designing a range for Next with her signature flourishes of colour and pattern.
“It’s been huge fun to work on. I take the view that although the budget might be different, the product should still look great. If a chair looks better with an extra trim, we find ways of making that happen. I still get a huge thrill when someone wants to buy something I’ve designed and use it as a centrepiece in their homes – it’s enormously flattering.” L shop.ninacampbell.com
Turnkeytricks
WITH BOLDER TASTES, GREATER EXPECTATIONS AND TIGHTER TIME CONSTRAINTS, THE VALUE OF HOME STAGING HAS NEVER BEEN HIGHER, FINDS ARABELLA YOUENS
WSet the STAGE
· Costs vary according to size of property, quality of the furniture and scope of work
· At the top end, expect to pay between 1 and 2% of the asking price
· The standard staging period is three months
· Some companies offer a full turnkey service with furniture packages
· Curate the look for the buyer or tenant: think mid-century furniture in an east London loft vs neutrals and glass in a Knightsbridge house
hen Alex Willcocks and his brother, Jack, set up a styling and home staging company, Burbeck Interiors, in 2013, the majority of property professionals they pitched to at the beginning said they saw no value in the service they were offering. The cost of decorating a property with fashionable furniture, soft furnishings and art seemed unnecessary. Now, according to the team, the phone doesn’t stop ringing. So far this year, they’ve (to use the preferred parlance) “dressed” properties in the capital valued from £500,000 to an £82m townhouse in Mayfair – “And everything in between,” says Willcocks. The company provides various levels of home styling, from staging to complete furniture packages, meaning new owners can arrive with just a suitcase in hand – hence the expression ‘turnkey property’. According to their figures, 85% of properties the Burbeck team takes on go under offer within four weeks. “It just works,” says Willcocks. “We recently looked after a property in Hampstead that had been on the market for nine months with no offers. After we’d dressed it, the house went under offer within a matter of days – to someone who had previously seen it. People need to be able to imagine themselves living in the property – they can’t do that when it’s vacant.”
Many agree that TV series
including Selling Sunset have helped popularise property staging. This, alongside a volatile housing market, has meant more owners and landlords at the top end of the capital’s property market are turning to experts for help. Charlotte Hodges-Peck , part of the interiors services team at Savills , sees a number of advantages to using a home stager: “Not only can a well-presented space draw buyers and tenants from the moment they begin their online search, but it also makes it easier to gauge a property’s size. We’re increasingly finding buyers at the upper end of the market want something they haven’t seen before, which is why our clients are leaning away from neutral interiors.”
Tara Welsh Gerrard, senior director of Knight Frank Interiors, agrees. “Dressing a property is crucial to ensuring maximum desirability. It can capture the personality of who the home belongs to – or could belong to.” This is particularly important in the new development market where homes can struggle to sell when left empty, adds John East of John D. Wood. Allen House, a new development off Kensington High Street, has seen
ALL DRESSED UP Opposite: Burbeck Interior's combination of graphic art and colourful contemporary furnishings brings new life to this Chelsea penthouse Above, top to bottom: The Knight Frank Interiors-furnished apartments in the new Knightsbridge Gate development demonstrate how sleek modern styling complements the building's period architecture; complete with wishbone chairs, this Fulham kitchen has been given a Scandi-style refresh by Burbeck Interiors
The LONDON GUIDE to SCHOOLS
HOW TO FIND THE RIGHT SCHOOL
From prep to boarding