Houzz Tour: Jewel Tones Bring Out the Grandeur of a London Flat
A Victorian apartment’s rich colors, luxurious materials and custom library ladder make for a delightful surprise
“This was such a lovely collaborative project to work on,” says Sacha Berger enthusiastically when asked about her role in designing this one-bedroom apartment in London’s King’s Cross. “I worked with the client to get the flat ready before her boyfriend returned from a long work trip. She wanted to surprise him with a big reveal. Luckily, he loved it.”
Berger used rich purple and gray tones throughout this space, with some luxurious metallic, velvet and glass accents.
The starting point for the design was this artwork. “We wanted a striking piece to fill the area between the two windows,” the designer says. “This is a huge print, and the lovely mauve-gray color palette inspired my choice for the rest of the space.”
Artwork: Mary Jane Ansell
The starting point for the design was this artwork. “We wanted a striking piece to fill the area between the two windows,” the designer says. “This is a huge print, and the lovely mauve-gray color palette inspired my choice for the rest of the space.”
Artwork: Mary Jane Ansell
The floor was “quite piney,” Berger says, so she gave it a lighter tone with a lime wash. She also had the ottoman made in just the right shade of pale gray.
“I had to be careful with gray — the wall color has a lot of taupe in it, so a cold gray would clash,” Berger says. “I found a gray fabric with just the right amount of mauve running through it for the ottoman.”
Sofa: Sweetpea & Willow; armchair: Liang & Eimil
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“I had to be careful with gray — the wall color has a lot of taupe in it, so a cold gray would clash,” Berger says. “I found a gray fabric with just the right amount of mauve running through it for the ottoman.”
Sofa: Sweetpea & Willow; armchair: Liang & Eimil
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The rich colors work beautifully with bold pieces, such as this bird lamp. Berger compensated for the lack of ceiling lights by incorporating plenty of lamps and some stunning wall lights.
“These [sconces] are beautiful and made from cut glass, which bounces light around and looks like icicles,” she says. “They’re [19½ inches] tall, which works well with the scale of the ceiling.”
Table lamp: House of Hackney; browse all kinds of lighting
“These [sconces] are beautiful and made from cut glass, which bounces light around and looks like icicles,” she says. “They’re [19½ inches] tall, which works well with the scale of the ceiling.”
Table lamp: House of Hackney; browse all kinds of lighting
An important element in the room is the reading corner, which suited the clients much more than a dining table. “I wanted to make some amazing [cabinetry] to be in proportion with the scale of the room,” Berger says. “So I brought in a really good [woodworker], Lee Purdom, to build this bookcase and some other cupboards in the property.
“The library ladder was, in fact, the most complicated part of the whole project,” she says. “I’d searched online and found that library ladders were really expensive, so Lee and I worked out how to replicate one.
“We chose a curtain pole and found the right brackets,” she says. “We needed the ladder to hook on and move along the pole. The material had to be strong enough to support it without an extra bracket in the center of the pole.”
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“The library ladder was, in fact, the most complicated part of the whole project,” she says. “I’d searched online and found that library ladders were really expensive, so Lee and I worked out how to replicate one.
“We chose a curtain pole and found the right brackets,” she says. “We needed the ladder to hook on and move along the pole. The material had to be strong enough to support it without an extra bracket in the center of the pole.”
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In the kitchen, Berger kept the original white cabinets, but she replaced the silver backsplash with this stunning brass one. Brushed brass outlets tie in with it, as do the bar stools.
Outlets: Buster + Punch; bar stools: Rockett St George; browse bar and counter stools
Outlets: Buster + Punch; bar stools: Rockett St George; browse bar and counter stools
At the opposite end of the room, Purdom created a large cabinet with traditional paneling.
“There was no storage in the flat, so this is large enough for everything, including the vacuum cleaner and fuse box,” Berger says.
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“There was no storage in the flat, so this is large enough for everything, including the vacuum cleaner and fuse box,” Berger says.
Find a cabinetmaker
The color scheme in the bedroom features dark blue and berry red. “It’s a long, thin room, and the main thing you see when you walk in is the window,” Berger says, “so I wanted the curtains to be a strong color feature.”
Regulations didn’t permit a wooden floor in this room, so she went for a soft silk carpet in pale gray. There were also restrictions on pipes, so the radiator in here is electric. Berger put a cover over it and positioned a large mirror above it.
Regulations didn’t permit a wooden floor in this room, so she went for a soft silk carpet in pale gray. There were also restrictions on pipes, so the radiator in here is electric. Berger put a cover over it and positioned a large mirror above it.
Wall paint: Ammonite, Farrow & Ball; mirror: Trade Fair International
Radiator Covers Like You’ve Never Seen
Radiator Covers Like You’ve Never Seen
Berger had a footstool made and covered in a plum red fabric. It tucks neatly beneath the West Elm dressing table.
Berger and Purdom made good use of the space by the door with this ample closet. It houses drawers, hanging space and shelves, and it has the same paneling as the cabinet in the living area.
Closet paint: Purbeck Stone, Farrow & Ball
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Closet paint: Purbeck Stone, Farrow & Ball
More home tours: Apartments | Small Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | All
Apartment at a Glance
Who lives here: A professional couple
Location: King’s Cross, London
Size: One bedroom, one bathroom
Designer: Sacha Berger of Honey Bee Interiors
Although Berger had a great relationship with her client, the Victorian Gothic building presented a number of challenges. The apartment is part of a huge renovation that saw the building returned to its former glory as a hotel, with private apartments on top.
“It’s a Grade I listed building, so there were a lot of restrictions on how we designed the flat, the main one being that we couldn’t install ceiling lights,” she says.
Challenges aside, the apartment is indeed beautiful — something Berger and her client wanted to showcase. “We wanted to bring out the grandeur of the place, with its [13-foot-high] ceilings and huge windows,” she says. “In the main living space, we let the room speak by using subtle hues.”
Wall paint: Elephant’s Breath, Farrow & Ball