An ‘uninhabitable’ former bakery in Fulham revived into a comfortable house

The parquet flooring in the living space was actually purchased around eight years prior to the couple buying the bakery. “We stored it in our house in France knowing that, at some point, we'd find a good home for it.”

Boz Gagovski

Once the inside was ready for decorating, James's approach was very much ‘less is more’. "I though let’s just paint the walls white and add patina with furniture and mouldings. We put some lovely, deeply carved egg and dart Georgian moulding around the utility room. It was important not to have everything fighting for your eye.”

Outside the property, the renovation continued with the same careful attention to detail. “We paved the yard with stone that had been taken up from around the Cutty Sark,” James notes. "When it went up in flames, the paved area around it was left very damaged by the weight of the fire engines that attended the blaze. When they restored it they also redid the stone and a chap I knew sold us the last bit of it.”

Boz Gagovski

It is perhaps, James's passion for salvaging materials that forms a link between the bakery and the château. Both properties have been sensitively restored using period-appropriate pieces found in markets, brocantes and antique fairs. “What we have done is create something that not everyone gets, but is lovely to be in. It’s still an uphill push - and costly - but the end result is always worth it. I can’t bear things that look shoddy, I’d rather not do anything at all.”

This keen eye for antiques is something that stems from James's childhood. "As a child, my mum would pick me up from school and we would have to go via an antique shop. I just loved it. I grew up with Beningbrough Hall - a Queen Anne red brick country house - as my backdrop. It had a huge impact on me as a child, and ultimately my heart will always lie in the beauty and decorative detail of the 18th century.”

Boz Gagovski

For a long time, James thought he would follow in his father’s footsteps and go into farming. “He won the National Trust grant for the 350-acre farm at Beningbrough aged just 22," he explains. “I even went to agriculture college before working on this farm for a few years. Then I just thought: ‘I'd like to try something else. I want to see more of the world.’” James sent letters to Christie’s and Sotheby’s asking for jobs and about a month later the phone rang in the farmhouse kitchen. “I’d been up since five milking cows and had just come in for my breakfast. My dad picked up the phone and it was the director of Christie’s in South Kensington. He said ‘we got your letter, we’ve got a job for you in the warehouse'.” Within a few weeks, James had packed up his life in Yorkshire and moved to London.

James spent twelve years at Christie’s before leaving to set up his own business, and he credits the auction house for much of his knowledge and his connections. It was during his time there that he met legendary interior designer Nicky Haslam, an early champion of James’s business. “I was just an apron-wearing porter when we met, but when I set up on my own he was so supportive. Nicky would always credit me in his projects and I was blown away that such a respected and clever interior designer would bother with someone like me.” The antique shop quickly became a stalwart of the industry, and James's wares continue to crop up in many a House & Garden project. (It is testament to his taste that they appear in a range of houses from the traditional to the very contemporary.)

The counters are made of Scottish hard granite. “It has a nice, aged, riven look about it,” says James. The kitchen splashback is made from Moroccan zellige tiles. “The first time I saw them used in that contemporary way, I just fell in love with the aged, slightly mismatched patina. They offer visual interest without being flashy."

Boz Gagovski

“You could have the most mundane object, but if you put a spotlight on it and give it some space, everyone will look at it more closely and say, ‘that’s lovely’. That could include 18th or 19th century objects, or something very modern, but if it’s of great quality it’ll do its part. Restraint is a skill in itself," says James. “I bought this from a dealer and decorator I know called Michel Lambrecht. He's based in Brussels where he goes off to flea markets with his dog and comes back with all sorts of bits and turns them into wall lamps. This one is was a little specimen used to teach medical students. Now, it's a lamp.” The vase beside it is from OKA.

Boz Gagovski

James and Andrew have since left the bakery for a mews house just off the Old Brompton Road, embarking on their fifth renovation project. “We did wonder if we were making a mistake by selling the bakery. My commute to work was about 20 yards - hell on a rainy day - but I coped with it,” James says wryly. As for how he still has the energy to take on yet another project? The key seems to be his endlessly positive attitude. “A renovation is a lot of fun and a lot of struggle, but really, I'm the luckiest man alive.”

It is one thing to establish a personal style; a recognisable, trademark ‘look’ applied to every project you undertake. It is entirely another to successfully alter your style to multiple different buildings, across multiple different periods–but then it appears that James Jackson isn't one to shy away from a challenge.

James Jackson: jamesjackson.shop | @jimandhim