A fashion insider’s sophisticated London townhouse designed by De Rosee Sa
Some architects see their job as done once the final coat of Graphenstone or Benjamin Moore paint has dried. The proportions are right, the spaces flow with ease, the detailing well executed - it's their masterpiece for that brief moment before it is sullied by the ephemera of life brought in by the client, or - God forbid - the interior designer. But in terms of private residential projects, the distinction between the role of architect and interior designer is increasingly becoming blurred.
London-based De Rosee Sa is one of a number of firms on House & Garden’s Top 100 that swings both ways. Max de Rosee and Claire Sa are the husband and wife principals of what started out as an architectural studio in 2007 but has since built up an interior design side of the business, offering their clients a more holistic and unified vision.
‘In some ways when you’ve thought about the design and structure and spatial flow, it’s really nice to then develop what’s going on the walls, or the lighting or the furniture,’ Claire Sa explains. ‘That when it all just begins to sing together.’
And sing it does, this five floor, stucco-fronted house is on a gorgeous west London garden square. Its owners, Alison Loehnis, president of Luxury and Fashion at Net-a-Porter, Mr Porter, and The Outnet, and her husband Alexander were living not far away when the house came on the market; the fact that he had grown up in a house on the other side of the square added a romantic sense of destiny to their decision to buy it.
All in all, the house was in pretty good nick, although there were some ‘bizarre elements’, Claire says. ‘There was a lot of chrome and glass, and a rear extension that felt a little like a Boots shop window.’ This was of course replaced, but such was the listing of the house that there was little that could be done in terms of major spatial reordering. In the main, they revived the house’s classical character, enhancing Georgian mouldings and architraves and restoring much of the original layout.
There was originally a pokey little garage on the lower ground floor, ‘so narrow that you could get the car in, but not open the door to get out of it.’ And doing away with this was one of the biggest game changers in how the house could be used: it became a boot room that now leads to the pantry and kitchen. ‘These houses have beautiful, elegant entrances,’ says Claire, ‘but at the end of the day families just need somewhere to dump their coats and clobber.’
The living area on the lower ground floor is a triumph, its walls clad in contemporary wide oak panels that wrap around the space. Here, buttercup yellow sofas and vintage Danish chairs gather under a ceiling of skinny white panels which add a bright and laid back feel to the elegant space. The dining table, designed by De Rosee Sa, is like a piece of sculpture – its curvaceous reeded base and top finished in a deep red lacquer. (A sculpture that extends to seat 14.)
‘Before we started, part of me was thinking, “Alison is a high-powered, American fashion person - this could be a disaster,”’ Claire recalls with a laugh. ‘But she was incredible to work with: Alison instantly “got” things and was a quick decision maker.’ It also helps that she and Alexander came with a collection of good art and a collection of 1970s design pieces that could be integrated into the designs. The drawing room one floor up is a groovy melange of contemporary, vintage and antique pieces with Picasso prints and contemporary geometric textiles. ‘This room is a good example of things found at auction in lockdown,’ Alison says, referring to a late-1800s French console and a travertine table.
The bedrooms are filled with pretty textiles new and antique, and there is a judicious use of colour throughout: a plum bathroom, red leather armchairs in a petrol blue snug, and a green velvet sofa, the shade of which mirrors the tones in the 18th-century pastoral painting behind it. ‘My interiors tastes are broader than my fashion,’ notes Alison. ‘At home I’m more inclined to go for colour.’
Claire knows how lucky she was to have clients who were as trusting and involved as Alison and Alexander were. ‘This home is proof that the best projects are when you get real engagement from the client, and they really care about the spaces they inhabit,’ she says. ‘Alison is an incredibly busy person, but I could text her any time of day and get a proactive response.’ And for her part, Claire was glad to see how De Rosee Sa could flex its creative muscle with a continuous, linear vision from the architecture to the finishing touches of a house. I suspect this project will become a calling card for what they can do.
De Rosee is a member of The List by House & Garden, our essential directory of design professionals. Find their profile here.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa1/18In the drawing room, Picasso prints hang in the alcoves. The armchairs are by Arne Hovmand-Olsen. On the floor is a Sitio rug by Commune for Christopher Farr.
2/18Loehnis in the drawing room wearing a Saint Laurent shirt, Mother jeans, and Christian Louboutin boots (net-a-porter.com).
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa3/18A pair of 18th-century French panels hangs above the Lorfords sofa; the tray is by De Rosee Sa.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa4/18The kitchen opens onto a dining area with a De Rosee Sa table and 1960s chairs by Arne Wahl Iversen.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa5/18
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa6/18The family room features Poul Kjærholm chairs, Emily Todhunter sofas, a De Rosee Sa table, and a Luke Irwin rug.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa7/18
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa8/18The pantry is distinguished by Paint & Paper Library’s ‘Kigali Blue’.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa9/18The study is painted in Paint & Paper Library’s ‘Caddie’.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa10/18Framed prints by Victor Pasmore line the stairs; the walls are painted in Farrow & Ball White Tie.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa11/18Fabrics by Soane, Romo, and Colefax and Fowler mingle in the primary bedroom; the photograph over the bed is by Massimo Vitali.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa12/18In the primary bath, Farrow & Ball’s ‘Setting Plaster’ complements the shower’s Rosa Aurora marble.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa13/18
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa14/18
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa15/18A guest bath is painted in Paint & Paper Library’s ‘Grenache’; the wall lights are by Soane Britain.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa16/18The library features teal gloss walls and a mix of patterned fabrics.
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa17/18
Simon Brown / De Rosee Sa18/18Tuppy the dog arrives from the garden, designed with tulip landscapes; the table and chairs are by Jo Alexander.
