For me it’s a relief that minimalism has long since fallen from favour in interior design. As a photographer, there just wasn’t enough to get your teeth into. I want colour, texture, pattern and detail, and here is a house that has them all in spades. As soon as I first walked through the door to recce the place, I knew the magazines would just love it. It helped that owners, Shaun Clarkson & Paul Brewster are successful designers, but maybe more importantly, they are avid collectors. Wedgewood, Denby and Poole pottery are particular favourites, but the house as a whole is a collection of individual pieces picked up over the years, and just works as a wonderful ensemble.
The house itself is a straightforward Georgian terrace in North London, which has over the years accommodated different uses. The large shopfront window in place of a domestically scaled sash denotes one previous use. The reeded glass was presumably added during its days as a solicitor’s office. Sadly much of the original interior detail was ripped out at that time, which has given Shaun & Paul the opportunity to create anything but straightforward interiors.
Upstairs, this 4 bedroom townhouse has unconventionally been converted into a 1 bedroom townhouse. Bedrooms 2, 3 & 4 being converted into study/sitting room, bathroom and dressing room respectively.
The splendid bathroom must be a tonic in the morning.
Clearly the collecting ‘gene’ extends to the dressing room.
Heading back down the stairs, lined with a growing collection of prints, a little green bathroom almost escapes attention.
In the basement, more visual treats await. What had been a gloomy sunless garden, has been enclosed with a glass roof to create a temperate palm house, while the space with virtually no natural light has made a perfect home cinema snug.
Fortunately for those of you who love this house as much as I do, Shaun & Paul have opened a fabulous homewares emporium in Hoxton, called Pitfield. Go collect!