The Brief
A completely unadorned space might seem like an interior designer’s dream; a blank canvas ready to receive whichever creative approach they choose. However, in reality, summoning character from scratch, with no interesting architectural features to shape or inspire, is far from easy. For this month’s creative assignment, House & Garden challenged the design team at Janine Stone to do just that – to take a plain, rather boring square of a room in a contemporary country house and bring it to life as an inviting sitting room, imbuing it with visual interest, comfort and the timeless sophistication for which the design studio is known.
The Response
A design that transcends time is surely one of the highest goals of any interior designer, and in a space like this, it is critical. It would be faintly ridiculous to take this kind of box-like room and transform it into a faithful replica of a Georgian drawing room, for example; yet, at the same time, the exclusively contemporary approach can lack charm and personality. Here, the Janine Stone designers have demonstrated their customary finesse in combining the best of all worlds. Beginning with the bones of the room, as all good designs do, they have added character by installing bespoke 18th-century-style cornices, a striking Art Deco-inspired fireplace, an inset ceiling, and details on the walls that suggest neo-classical panelling. There is an evident lightness of touch at play here, as tradition and classicism are carefully balanced with modernity, while ensuring that no element jars with another. With this coherent structure in place, the decoration of the room has been conceived to create an atmosphere of inviting warmth.
Shades of brown, from the caramel colour of the walls to the dark wood of the furniture, create a richly luxurious feel, with a touch of drama introduced through the spectacular coffee table, which is carved from ziricote wood. Meanwhile, the lighter, cooler tones of the ceiling, the rug and the sofa help to balance this opulence. In a similar way, the room’s grand architectural features are softened by the visible comfort of the upholstered furniture, as well as by the gentle glow of well-placed accent lights throughout.
The space is dotted with a collection of fascinating decorative objects, each of which tells a story and will spark conversation between the house’s owners and visitors. Sculptures by Peter Boiger and Ryszard Piotrowski invite interpretation, while antique tortoise-shell boxes and bronze candelabra conjure up images of bygone eras and far-flung travel. Yet, the finished scheme is not a pastiche of a particular time or place but, rather, in its blend of considered components, it is something entirely of its own.
Janine Stone is an award-winning interior architecture and project management firm, specialising in luxury residential and commercial projects. For more information, call 020 7349 8888 or visit janinestone.com
