Gloucester Place, Marylebone

The Journey

Our designer, Sarah Kahn, has a keen eye for detail. She understood what the client was aiming for right from the start and got down to business researching materials that blended the original characteristics of the building with modern-day functionality.
Due to the age of some of the beautiful features, finding originals to match wasn’t feasible. However, we were able to find specialists to make bespoke skirting boards, dado rails, picture rails, cornices and mouldings. The coving was particularly difficult, and we had to have mouldings made by a coving contractor based in London.

Sarah chose traditional roll-top radiators and solid oak flooring to bring the building back to its original design. All of the flooring was installed by Stuart Munn French Polishing and Wood Flooring Ltd, and they did an amazing job.

The bathrooms were finished in large marble tiles, a traditional material that adds the perfect modern look. And, to finish the modern touches, our contractor, Barlows Electrical, did a complete re-wire, installing discrete controlled lighting. The client can now operate their entire home via an iPad with morning, day and night settings.

To facilitate the work around the loading restrictions, we made special transport arrangements and had large teams on hand to carry out the loading and unloading quickly. We also carefully pre-planned every stage of the work so that all jobs creating loud noise were scheduled, and all of the common areas were fully protected and cleaned on a daily basis, to minimise inconvenience to other tenants. SKK manage all of the building controls ensuring complete compliance with regulations including, in this case, listed building applications.

The Unexpected

Of course, every job can pose a complication. During the strip-out we uncovered some previous structural work that was unsafe. We brought in a structural engineer to assist in planning and replacing the structure, which proved problematic due to the limited space in which we carried out the work.

The Result

Sarah worked closely with the client to understand their aims and create an appealing design. They were also reassured by our knowledge and reputation for quality work. Now they have a beautiful bright and airy open plan home, with very tall bespoke furniture, suited to the age of the building and their London location.

We were, of course, delighted by the testimonial from our client – below – but we were also very pleased to receive a comment from the building owner, who took the time to contact our client and express how pleased they were with us, how tidily we worked and the professional manner in which we conducted ourselves.