Kensington Mews House

Kensington Mews House

One of a huddle of mews cottages tucked away in West London, this narrow Victorian house was in a sorry state – covered in pebbledash, cramped, dark and pokey with little natural light and no remaining original architectural details to redeem it.

We set about stripping the house back to its bones, rewiring, replumbing, adding windows and repositioning doorways to afford better use of space and to maximise light whilst keeping true to the building’s original character and quiet, modest charm.

Throughout, great attention was paid to choosing materials that would be in keeping with the original building as well as finding the most skilled craftsmen to work with them: The pebble dash was expertly removed, and the newly exposed original brickwork repointed; Cast iron gutters and drain pipes were sourced from a foundry in Huddersfield; Reclaimed cobbles were sourced and laid outside. Inside, cast iron radiators were installed upstairs, and underfloor heating was laid under parquet flooring throughout the ground floor. Walls were panelled and topped with cornicing to add elegance, definition, and height; ‘Invisible’ speakers were hidden in the ceilings, and technology and storage were concealed in easily accessible but secret cupboards.

Whilst the building work was underway, Tamsin set about sourcing the ‘beautiful functional comfortable and unique’ pieces which are her trademark – antique furniture and lighting, beautiful textiles and original paintings and sculpture which would add character, depth and charm.

It is a home filled with the client’s love of art, music and reading. Tamsin designed a new layout that gave an essentially open-plan ground floor to three defined areas, each with a unique use and purpose – cooking, dining, and relaxing. The narrow doorway into the kitchen was widened to mirror the doors leading out into the garden. An early 18th Century Bachelors Chest sits to the left, below a mid-century French mirror. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves line the wall of what was previously a no-man land between the sitting area and the kitchen but now holds its own as a defined and useful space.

The banquette seat was upholstered in old Dutch wedding linen, and the oak chairs are early Hans Wegner (from his collaboration with master cabinetmaker Johannes Hansen in the 1940s – 50s) and were upholstered in Halk green vegetable died wool. The mid-century brass adjustable overhead pull lamp above the table was sourced from Belgium.

The narrow width of the extension, which holds the kitchen, is in keeping with the building’s modest scale and calm aesthetic. The side wall looking out onto the small courtyard garden was opened up, and windows installed along its length, and beneath them, within reaching distance, window boxes were planted with herbs. The muted grey colour palette (inspired by the slate roofs of the surrounding cottages), bespoke joinery, natural and reclaimed materials and the solid, reassuring presence of an aga at its heart means the entire kitchen feels intended rather than compromised.

The house is filled with unexpected details and thoughtful features. Both the client and Tamsin agreed that when furnishing the house, one of the principles should be to reject anything to which you could attach a price tag or might find or see somewhere else. Everything, including this little lamp in the hallway, is a vintage one-off find.

A modestly framed oil painting by John Wells and beneath it, a little enamel and brass lamp perched on the corner of the piano are two of the first things you see when you come into the house. The client’s only stipulation when it came to the furnishing and decoration of the house was that he needed a lot of storage space for all his books, and he wished to keep the piano.

A Victorian cast iron spiral staircase leads to the bedrooms on the first floor. We opened up the roof and installed a large roof light. Shafts of light pour in throughout the day – although narrow, the house is always light-filled.The house has a reassuring solidity, and great attention was paid to the details throughout: The staircase and handrail were lacquered, and each tread and spindle painstakingly aged by hand; The parquet floor, which feels so much part of the original house, is in fact newly laid but reclaimed – the step beneath the final stair precisely curved to echo the tread on the staircase above.

Furnished solely with antiques, its panelled walls whitewashed and lined with books and paintings, the house has patina and a sense of permanence. Two Carl Aubock Wicker Tables, and a Modernist French side table from the 1930s flank the pair of original Howard and Son sofas either side of the fireplace. A cast bronze faux bamboo floor lamp by Maison Bagues provides light for reading.

The building’s slender proportions meant storage was key. Tamsin installed a faux chimney breast with a reclaimed fireplace and created pull-out storage for the owner’s DVDs behind the chimney breast; on the opposite wall, an oak-lined drinks cupboard hidden behind panelling holds glassware, bottles of spirits, mixers and all the accoutrements needed to create the perfect cocktail. The sitting room on the ground floor transforms into a ‘secret cinema’. A full-width screen concealed behind the cornicing above the bay window comes down at the press of a button, surround sound is supplied courtesy of ‘invisible’ speakers hidden in the ceiling, and the client’s DVD collection is stored behind the chimney breast.

One feels a sense of delight coming up the spiral staircase into the light-filled rooms and seeing the sky through the roof light above. The client had assumed the house should be flipped and the living areas moved upstairs – but to Tamsin it was obvious that it should not only remain as it was but was the strongest way of connecting the inside with light and nature.A gentle brown hand-woven flat weave carpet covers the floors of the first-floor bedrooms and landing. Custom made in India, it is far less polished or uniform than most fitted carpets – its rustic charm entirely in keeping with the building’s modest, lovingly crafted aesthetic.

Every piece of furniture, every lamp, rug or painting Tamsin found for her client has had another life elsewhere. Combined they create a practical, unassuming and original home that feels as if the owner has lived there forever.

The master bedroom, although small, feels calm and uncluttered thanks to an elegant muted colour scheme and simple utilitarian aesthetic and panelling, which conceals a wall of wardrobes opposite the bed. The original windows were replaced with French doors looking out onto a new roof terrace, which we built above the kitchen and planted with lavender and olive trees for screening throughout the year. A little Arts and Crafts table outside makes it a wonderful spot to enjoy a coffee or soak up the sun in the summer.

It’s the little details, the unusual combinations of unassuming but beautiful objects, original art and hand-crafted pieces that make the house feel lived-in and loved.

The original bathroom was small, dark and pokey. Tamsin designed a new layout and repositioned the doorway to create a generous shower room. Storage is concealed beneath the windows; a large bubble roof light and lightly veined honed carrara marble help create a feeling of openness and space despite its modest size.

In the guest bedroom, walls are decorated in hand-block printed wallpaper in a bespoke soft nut brown colour. 1950s wall lights in their original yellow paint sit above each bed, and a beautifully patinated hand-carved 19th-century chest of drawers from Sweden fits snuggly under the window in between. The signed Swedish mid Century flat weave rug (probably a private commission), and vintage Welsh tapestry blankets add bold colour (putty, butter yellow and chocolate) and gentle pattern.

Completed in 2018. Kensington, London.

Featured on the cover and in House & Garden.