Home Bird
Daniel Hopwood | Architecture and Interior Design, London

Studio Hopwood
86 Gloucester Place
London
W1U 6HP :

Contact

studio@danielhopwood.com

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Site Credits
Made by Six

British Institute of Interior Design Member
Home Bird Marylebone, London
Residential

Home Bird

Marylebone, London
Residential
Living Room Joinery Sofa
Daniel Hopwood Coffee Table detail
Daniel Hopwood Dining Area Living Room
Before
After
Daniel Hopwood view from kitchen
Daniel Hopwood Kitchen
London Master Bedroom Daniel Hopwood
Daniel Hopwood Headboard detail
London interior designer, Daniel Hopwood Bedroom
Antique commode Daniel Hopwood Interior Design
Dressing Room Bathroom Daniel Hopwood Interiors
London bathroom design Daniel Hopwood
Shower Tile detail Daniel Hopwood
London interior designer, Daniel Hopwood. Striking dressing room design
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The living room has been updated for Spring with panels of Tektura's Shinrin Mono by Kata Lips. These panels can be removed to create a different mood moving into Autumn. Dan's existing B&B Italia sofa was partially reupholstered in Lelievre's Cosmos velvet and new cushions were made from Pierre Frey's striking Cosma textured fabric.
The TV panel is made of grey stained oak with metal bronze inserts. The panel being dark conceals the screen. A German antique coffee table adds artistic flair.
By adding a banquette in the bay window around a dining table has created what is almost an old fashioned winter garden. The ceiling has a suspended blue steel panel which reflect the panorama outside. There is an gold lined centerpiece which glows light on to the table without obscuring the view.
Electric louvered blinds from Thomas Sanderson make a big impact in the dining area, allowing light to flow in, but offer shade in summer.
Artwork by Edo Modeney, with a Minotti leather armchair and Bert Frank floor lamp.
A view from the kitchen into the living room. Glass sliding doors between sitting room and living room can be close when cooking or left opened to reveal the cantilevered bar.
The cantilevered bar is made of porcelain marble effect slabs - a lighter option which can be key in city apartments.
Reflective surfaces bring as much light as possible into the flat. Blue mirror makes a striking alternative.
Wall cupboards can be heavy in a small kitchen. Open shelving allows you to show off your finest crockery, and ensures that you use it.
The Master bedroom is a striking, layered affair.
A headboard should be a real event, here achieved through the layer of pattern gilded glass and a punchy, patterned panel. Bedside pendants are from Bert Frank.
Extensive wardrobes and shoe storage looks more discreet by being panelled in bronze tinted glass.
An alcove lined in Japanese washed silk houses a nineteenth century Venetian commode. Creating a specific niche for a prized item allows it to shine.
The view into the bathroom and dressing room from the master bedroom.
To integrate the bathroom with the master suite the door is concertinaed and panelled in sand blasted reeded glass. Dornbracht taps in pale gold bring a touch of glamour.
To avoid using spotlights, LED tape has been used to great effect, embedded in the wall and ceiling. A sliver of tiles by Barber Osgerby for Mutina creates a focal point.
Using a sliver of a fabulous tile like these from Barber Osgerby for Mutina, means you can go for something really special.
A dressing room needs to be both functional and inspiring. A bank of wardrobes with handles from Ochre face a line of Vitsoe shelving that house books and treasures from my travels. A Vivienne Westwood lips cushion is a cheeky addition to a grown up room.
The dark hallway creates the contrast to the lighter rooms beyond with light bouncing from the polished floor. The walls have been paint dark to hide awkward beams and make the room feel bigger.
One area where I believe you can, and should, go wild is the Guest WC. Make it an event! The walls are lined in high-shine Deralam and a onyx-effect light box creates a moody glow. A WC from TOTO is the ultimate luxury.
 
The living room has been updated for Spring with panels of Tektura's Shinrin Mono by Kata Lips. These panels can be removed to create a different mood moving into Autumn. Dan's existing B&B Italia sofa was partially reupholstered in Lelievre's Cosmos velvet and new cushions were made from Pierre Frey's striking Cosma textured fabric.
The TV panel is made of grey stained oak with metal bronze inserts. The panel being dark conceals the screen. A German antique coffee table adds artistic flair.
By adding a banquette in the bay window around a dining table has created what is almost an old fashioned winter garden. The ceiling has a suspended blue steel panel which reflect the panorama outside. There is an gold lined centerpiece which glows light on to the table without obscuring the view.
Electric louvered blinds from Thomas Sanderson make a big impact in the dining area, allowing light to flow in, but offer shade in summer.
Artwork by Edo Modeney, with a Minotti leather armchair and Bert Frank floor lamp.
A view from the kitchen into the living room. Glass sliding doors between sitting room and living room can be close when cooking or left opened to reveal the cantilevered bar.
The cantilevered bar is made of porcelain marble effect slabs - a lighter option which can be key in city apartments.
Reflective surfaces bring as much light as possible into the flat. Blue mirror makes a striking alternative.
Wall cupboards can be heavy in a small kitchen. Open shelving allows you to show off your finest crockery, and ensures that you use it.
The Master bedroom is a striking, layered affair.
A headboard should be a real event, here achieved through the layer of pattern gilded glass and a punchy, patterned panel. Bedside pendants are from Bert Frank.
Extensive wardrobes and shoe storage looks more discreet by being panelled in bronze tinted glass.
An alcove lined in Japanese washed silk houses a nineteenth century Venetian commode. Creating a specific niche for a prized item allows it to shine.
The view into the bathroom and dressing room from the master bedroom.
To integrate the bathroom with the master suite the door is concertinaed and panelled in sand blasted reeded glass. Dornbracht taps in pale gold bring a touch of glamour.
To avoid using spotlights, LED tape has been used to great effect, embedded in the wall and ceiling. A sliver of tiles by Barber Osgerby for Mutina creates a focal point.
Using a sliver of a fabulous tile like these from Barber Osgerby for Mutina, means you can go for something really special.
A dressing room needs to be both functional and inspiring. A bank of wardrobes with handles from Ochre face a line of Vitsoe shelving that house books and treasures from my travels. A Vivienne Westwood lips cushion is a cheeky addition to a grown up room.
The dark hallway creates the contrast to the lighter rooms beyond with light bouncing from the polished floor. The walls have been paint dark to hide awkward beams and make the room feel bigger.
One area where I believe you can, and should, go wild is the Guest WC. Make it an event! The walls are lined in high-shine Deralam and a onyx-effect light box creates a moody glow. A WC from TOTO is the ultimate luxury.

Home Bird

Designers Statement

I love London, I always have. A city that fizzes with life, an exciting place to be. When I was young I dreamt of living there and I hoped one day to be right in the middle, where it is all happening. Although such dreams do take a while to achieve, especially as property is exceptionally expensive. I eventually arrived. I found a flat in Marylebone. A quarter that is liveable because of the decent high street and proximity to Regent’s Park, and yet is only a short walk away to the West End — the home of London’s theatres. The flat is on the top floor of a town house that was rebuilt after war, the views are spectacular including the 18th century Church of St. Marylebone. I bought the cheapest flat on an expensive street.

 

That was ten years ago. The flat was affordable as it was still in its 1958 state — charming yet freezing — and the shower was a rubber contraption pushed over the bath taps. Easily solved you’d think with my experience of designing and refurbishing homes for clients, but life is not that simple. I first had to break the back of an expensive mortgage, instead of heating I wore an extra sweater in the winter and put some money in the bank instead.

 

The renovation money was in the bank but the measured survey of my apartment still sat on the drawing board in the office untouched, as there was always another project landing in the office that required immediate attention. Each time I glanced at the plans, I just couldn’t see the vision, something I do everyday for others but for myself, I didn’t find it so easy. I know what my clients must go through during the design process, concerned about getting the designs right, as mistakes can be expensive when it comes to interior design. A successful project is the result of a collaboration between client and designer. A good designer will help a client discover their own sense of style rather than imposing their own and spend time listening, in order to understand their lifestyle and practical needs. You just can’t do this sort of stuff on your own.

 

To solve the problem I decided to create a brief covering how I wanted my to home to look and feel and how it should be laid out and consult with the fabulous team that I work with.

 

Although the flat has great views and has the perfect east/west aspect, it is quite compact with low ceilings. It would have to work hard to accommodate my lifestyle and belongings and be a haven from a busy life. I wanted the best but didn’t want bling, just intelligent design with just the occasional moment of exuberance. The nearest comparison could be a bespoke suit. Understated, structured, elegant, great details but then checking the inside of the jacket and find hiding there is a rather naughty, slightly lurid lining.

 

Wanting to take advantage of every square inch I decided to take a look at how the Japanese manage to live well in small spaces. I liked how they can make each room multipurpose by using  sliding doors that can be opened to create open plan living or closed to create an intimate space. I also admire the simplicity in Japanese homes with the use of just a few materials to great effect and their ethos of only keeping what is loved and useful. In that light I felt my furniture was collection of odd pieces that I had accumulated over the years, I certainly didn’t love it all and little of it was necessary, it just sort of existed. I decided to let most of it go, here was my chance to start afresh and find pieces that worked for me and look considered.

 

As I spend most of time there in the evenings I preferred to have a dark, warm atmosphere, a sort of modern gentleman’s club style. I achieved this with the use of oak stained in grey offset with either shiny or white surfaces that pulled light right into the heart of the flat so that the space didn’t look gloomy. I didn’t want a show flat, I desired a home — friendly, lively and with a certain level of provenance. I did this by playing with contrasts, light and dark, rough and smooth, placing old against new such as installing a 19th century Venetian Bombé commode in a specially designed niche.

 

It has taken a while to achieve my dream, living in a beautiful part of London in a lovely apartment but here it is. I do hope it is a useful case study on how compact urban living can be pleasurable and individualist too, especially if you commission an interior designer!

 

 

Pictured