Walkthrough - the drawing room part 1

Walkthrough: The Drawing Room

The large tapestry, screen and large mirror are all things that are balancing each other. It is essential that the scale is right without any obvious symmetry.

The Furniture Layout

Getting the maximum out of a room includes getting the right amount of seating.

The Lighting

From the beginning when you are doing your furniture layout you need to work out where the lamps will go to then work out where the sockets go. I use wall lights normally on either side of the fireplace. Whilst my wall lights are always symmetrical my lamps are not.

Layering the Room

I even layer my mirrors as it makes it more interesting for me. Putting a picture in front of the mirror I think changes everything. I am a fan of screens in a corner with things on top of them. When you have a screen it is great having a round table with a table cloth in front of it.

Design Notes

• A tapestry depicting Brutus killing Caesar hangs behind the sofa. It dates back to the seventeenth-century.
• Pale linen from Pierre Frey is used for the sofa, and carved walnut Regency armchairs were upholstered in 'Drago' velvet from Pierre Frey.
• On the door hangs a watercolour by Russian avant-garde artist Natalia Goncharova.
• Original Chippendale mirror over the fireplace

Inherited Pieces

The bust of Njinksy the dancer belonged to my parents. I wanted to give the bust height -just by putting the books underneath them it worked. Having a strong William V masculine table works really well to hold the various things up.

What Goes with What?

Don't worry about having to try different things. Try as many things as possible and get different solutions out of it. When you are doing an interior, put the carpet down and then put the furniture around it, this will allow you to see how the whole thing works. Then starting hanging the pictures. There are certain pictures that can only go in certain spaces.

How to Know When You Are Finished?

There comes a point where you have to declare it is finished. This is the moment where you give your client a chance to bring in their own character.