A London townhouse, located in a charming pocket between Holland Park, Notting Hill, and Ladbroke Grove, has been transformed by BOMA Projects into an elegant and earthy home. The building, which had barely been touched since the 1980s, was divided into smaller flats before being purchased by its current owner, a tech entrepreneur from Copenhagen.
The owner wanted his new base to feel earthy, warm, and tactile, while still respectful of the history of the building. To achieve this, he brought in BOMA Projects, led by Georgia Burne, co-founder and director of the London-based practice. Georgia found traces of the original grandeur, discernible in the four-metre-high ceilings and full-height French doors.
However, other ceilings had been lowered, the layout was disjointed, and a metal spiral staircase had been inserted into the main living space. Georgia’s intention was to uncover what was already inherently beautiful about the property, by reinstating the ceiling heights, restoring the proportions of the main rooms, and celebrating the extraordinary natural light.
Restoring the Property’s Original Grandeur
Georgia introduced a new central staircase, which became a sculptural element in its own right, giving the space back the sense of permanence it had lost. The brief was about balancing functionality and feeling, with every design decision beginning with the architecture and the light. Georgia also focused on restoring a sense of scale, as the property had been broken into smaller spaces.
Achieving this was no mean feat, as construction techniques have come a long way since the 1980s. According to Georgia, we invest far more in the strength of a structure today. Once they had stripped the space back to brick and floor joists, it was clear that a lot more work was needed to accommodate underfloor heating and ensure the timber floor would align perfectly throughout the rooms.
A Delicate Balance of Practicality and Aesthetics
Installing a new staircase in the centre of the space also meant additional strengthening to the floor below was needed. Each structural decision had to balance practicality and aesthetics, with a knock-on effect on the layout. This took a lot of conversation and idea generation between the engineers and the design team to land on solutions that worked for everyone, according to Marcus Moore, Boma Projects director and co-founder.
The earthy, tonal palette relies more on texture and materiality than colour, with the Versailles flooring custom made for the space and tumbled to give it the character and irregularity of a reclaimed floor before being finished in a dark smoked oak. Georgia paired the dark timber with warm clay walls and ornate coving, skirting, and architectural detailing.
This contrast is a recurring theme throughout the project, with traditional proportions and ornate details sitting alongside a much quieter, more contemporary material language. Furniture, lighting, and art were kept relatively restrained and sculptural, with individual pieces having space around them and almost being read as objects in their own right.
A Calm and Tactile Interior
Georgia is particularly satisfied with the main bathroom, where tadelakt was used on the walls and colour-matched to the clay finish used throughout the rest of the property. Blue Fusion marble brings movement and colour into the restrained palette. The combination of these materials sums up the approach to the whole project, with a quiet and earthy backdrop and moments of richer materiality that bring the spaces to life without overwhelming them.
Georgia believes that the interiors have exactly the balance they were trying to achieve, with a masculine quality softened by natural materials, traditional detailing, and an abundance of light. The townhouse has regained its grandeur and elegance, but it doesn’t feel like a traditional period interior. Instead, it feels calm, tactile, and contemporary, and very much like the client’s home.
The project’s completion marks the end of a long and challenging journey, but the outcome is well worth it. The townhouse is now a stunning example of what can be achieved with good design and a commitment to excellence. bomaprojects.com, sothebysrealty.co.uk