An elegant Chelsea townhouse revived with a sense of playfulness by d’Erlanger and Sloan
Like so many things in life, the purchase of this house in Chelsea came down to a twist of fate. ‘It had belonged to the aunt of a friend, who had mentioned she might want to sell,’ says the owner. ‘When we were gazumped on a house nearby, I asked if this was still the case.’ (There was an element of schadenfreude, too, as the gazumpers have yet to move into their house four years later.)
The couple exchanged on the property the day before England entered its first lockdown and tasked designers d’Erlanger and Sloan with taking it back to the brick. ‘It was beautiful, with huge windows and high ceilings typical of Victorian houses in this area,’ Emilia d’Erlanger says. But the 1980s decoration was tired. Over two years, she and design partner Anna Sloan transformed it into a warm, vibrant and playful home for the couple and their young family.
The interior design studio has offices in London and Nashville in Tennessee (where Anna has lived since 2017) and works on residential projects in Britain, Europe and – increasingly – in the US, where its contemporary take on classic British interiors is finding an eager new audience. Having employed the duo to reshape two previous homes, the owners knew it was a good partnership and that d’Erlanger and Sloan would deliver what they wanted: warmth, texture and familiarity. ‘And also enough character to challenge us,’ says the husband. ‘They encouraged us to take a few risks and the result is a house that’s not boring, but is not trying too hard either.’ It feels traditional but with an edge – the grandeur characteristic of this part of Chelsea is still palpable, but softened.
Structurally, the biggest part of the renovation was reconfiguring and extending the lower-ground floor. A jumble of dark rooms and passages was turned into a boot room, cloakroom, utility room and playroom, with internal windows and glass doors added to give sight- lines between the kitchen and playroom, and bring in lots of natural light. The original kitchen has been extended, the ceiling raised and three arched double doorways created, leading to the garden. Much of the family’s time is spent in this airy, bright space, where subtle texture is provided by slightly undulating tadelakt plaster walls that chime with the Bedouin feel of the snug behind the sitting area.
This large windowless bay, filled with a vast L-shaped sofa, can be screened from the rest of the room with a curtain. It features handmade Atelier Vime wicker panels on the walls and a tented ceiling in ‘Humbug Ticking’ cotton from Howe at 36 Bourne Street. ‘It’s a theatrical little gem that sits in contrast to the contemporary kitchen,’ says Anna.‘The wicker is a link to the garden and, for the sofa, we chose an understated fabric that fits with the original, utilitarian purposes of the lower-ground floor,’ Emilia explains.
This thread of originality carries through to the garden room on the upper-ground floor, where moss-green velvet walls with a depth of colour as beautiful as it is cosseting showcase contemporary art from the owners’ collection. ‘We designed a huge sofa for this room and hid the TV in a handmade cabinet,’ says Emilia. ‘So they can enjoy movie nights, but to the naked eye, it’s a sumptuous second drawing room.’ It adjoins the larger one at the front of the house.
The main bedroom is another tranquil haven away from family life. The staircase to the upper floors was moved to allow access to an en-suite bathroom overlooking the garden, while a dressing room ensures there is no clutter around the contemporary take on a fairy-tale four-poster bed. The explosion of colour on the second floor, with walls papered in Schumacher’s ‘Citrus Garden’ and sunny yellow woodwork is an example of Emilia encouraging the owners to take a leap of faith. ‘We wanted a shift of energy as you enter the children’s floor,’ she says. ‘Many of us still remember the wallpaper or curtains from our childhood bedroom, so we have created a bright, happy space that makes memories for them.’
The daughter’s bedroom has a canopied bed that introduces an element of fantasy, but the designers have steered away from ‘overtly kiddy stuff ’ and used grown-up finishes and fabrics in a youthful way. ‘It’s important that our houses last and don’t feel faddy,’ Anna says. ‘We love using interesting furniture and objets to bring character to a room.’ Many of the pieces sourced for this house, such as a scalloped Victorian butler’s sink and mahogany framed loo in the lower cloakroom, feel as if they might have always been there.
‘We’d never want our interiors to be a reflection of us,’ Emilia says. ‘There’s nothing nicer than walking into a home and thinking, “Look at what this person has done, where they’ve travelled, the things they like...” The family also needs to feel that they can live in the house without treading on eggshells.’ The owners of this elegant beauty agree, ‘Our children endlessly have friends over and our son has an art class here every week. That’s what we wanted – a house full of children and laughter and fun’.
Lucas Allen1/8The stylish simplicity of the Matthew Cox oak ‘Orangery’ table in a natural finish is complemented by Pinch’s ‘Avery’ leather-upholstered oak dining chairs. The wall lights between the arched French windows, made to d’Erlanger and Sloan’s design, are ‘Bronte’ from Porta Romana.
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Lucas Allen3/8Cox London’s ‘Bronze Mask’ chandelier, a ‘Bucranium’ mirror from Howe London and a walnut side table from Rose Uniacke provide elegant focal points in the drawing room. A bespoke sofa in Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler’s ‘Seaweed’ linen in khaki stands on a ‘Tangier’ rug from Robert Stephenson.
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Lucas Allen6/8In the daughter's bedroom, pelmets and wall curtains in striped ‘Brittany’ linen in cherry from LinenMe create an inviting alcove for the bed, which is flanked by Alfred Newall’s ‘Bobbin Demi-Lune’ side tables. The ‘Roxy’ lamps and suzani bedcover are from Julian Chichester.
Lucas Allen7/8In the main bedroom, Rosa Bernal’s ‘Sevilla’ linen in azul ochre from Claremont was used for the canopy and curtains on the bespoke four-poster made by Beaudesert.
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