A Victorian house in west London that combines subtle sophistication with a brilliant sense of fun

Miraculously, everything went more or less to plan and Charlotte can’t recall a single disaster. It was this positive experience, and a fruitful collaboration with the architects and contractors, that gave her the validation she needed to set up her own interior design studio. The house is a pretty impressive calling card. In particular, it demonstrates her eye for colour and pattern, which she honed while working for Salvesen Graham and Martin Brudnizki and since launching her studio in 2020 has been applying to her own projects in the UK and North America.

A gallery wall of pictures bought by the couple over the years provides a striking focal point in the main entrance hall outside the study. The pendant light is from Pure White Lines.

Sarah Griggs

Over the years, Charlotte had gathered swatches of favourite fabrics and wallpapers and these served as the starting point for some of the rooms. The main bedroom, for instance, began with Soane’s ‘Seaweed Lattice’ wallpaper, which has inspired a warm palette of pinks, reds and oranges. Downstairs in the sitting room, a sofa in ‘Les Ecailles’ by Le Manach – a design that first caught her eye in Martin’s sample library – is now at the heart of a richly layered and textured scheme. The spacious study next door is rather punchier, with its walls and ceiling in blue lacquer and his and hers desk chairs in pink and green velvet. ‘I wanted the house to be sophisticated and interesting without it taking itself too seriously,’ says Charlotte, who has dialled down the luxurious feel with plenty of playful elements.

The stairs lead down to a relaxed sitting area at one end of the kitchen. It is furnished with a mix of high-street and antique finds, including a children’s table and chair set from B&Q, a rug from Oka and a Lorfords sofa in ‘Ashfield II’ in teal from Linwood. ‘I have to give A&A Architects credit for coming up with this genius idea of using a wooden garden gate as a stair gate for the kids – it’s something I’ve copied ever since,’ says Charlotte.

Sarah Griggs

It is impossible to miss the menagerie of animals – in the form of sculptures, art, tiles and baskets – that fills the children’s rooms on the top floor, but these are not the only fantastical inhabitants. In various rooms, sliding and hinged sections of the skirting boards open to reveal the house’s very own family of Borrowers. Charlotte sourced doll’s house figures, furniture and lighting for these miniature room scenes, which she calls ‘Borrower holes’ after Mary Norton’s classic book. ‘I used to work for the children’s author Lauren Child, who told me about a tiny mouse hole in the skirting board of her childhood home. I visited the house with her once and thought I’d love to do something similar one day,’ she says. ‘My husband was so embarrassed because we’d have important meetings with the builders and at the end I'd say, “Sorry, I just need the electrician to look at these tiny lights.” It’s actually become a signature thing in all my projects and, so far, no one has objected.’

An ottoman from Clock House Furniture is at the centre of the sitting area, which has built-in shelving painted in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Studio Green’ to tie in with the adjoining kitchen.

Sarah Griggs

The ‘Borrower holes’ throughout the house relate to whichever room they are in – here it’s the kitchen – and are created using doll’s house figures and furniture. ‘When I create these for clients, I make a scene that relates to their family and often include their children and pets. One client recently had a new baby so I sent them a baby figure to add to theirs,’ says Charlotte of this rather lovely tradition.

Patrick Butler-Madden

I suspect that a wendy house under the stairs will become another Charlotte Smiley trademark, after clients see the one she has designed for her own home. With pretty gingham curtains and a window box of faux flowers, it provides the sweetest little hideaway next to the basement playroom. But it is on the floor above that the family spends most of their time, cooking, eating and entertaining in the kitchen and relaxing in the adjoining sitting area. Even the garden has been designed to feel like an extension of the comfortable yet elegant interiors. ‘If I was doing this house again, I would add more cushion storage as it’s an absolute pain to pull them all in when it rains,’ says Charlotte. It’s almost six years since they finished the work and this is one of her only regrets. There could be no surer sign of a successful project.

Charlotte Smiley: charlottesmiley.com | @charlottesmiley_interiors