Amongst the vibrant bustle of Notting Hill

Working closely with our client, the team were able to meet the functional requirements of the space, while aligning with the subtle, breezy elegance of this luxurious first-floor apartment.

Our client and her family, who had been living overseas for several years, decided it was time to replant some London roots. They had been coming back to the UK regularly, usually staying with family and or in hotels, which, she explained, often felt a bit nomadic. “We were keen to create a real home from home. Having lived in west London through the children’s early school years, Notting Hill felt comfortable and familiar... the right place for a base.”

Having undertaken several other renovation projects, both in the UK and overseas, our client was realistic about the time constraints on her capacity as a project manager but was nonetheless armed with a strong vision for the project. “We purchased the property both as an investment, for short-term let, and to be our family UK base. As such, it needed to have high-end rental appeal, whilst, at the same time, feeling like home,” she explains.

Our client was committed to carefully considered bespoke cabinetry for the kitchen, living room and bedroom spaces of her newly renovated Notting Hill apartment. The kitchen space, which is high-ceilinged and elegantly compact, leads directly to a bright, airy dining room. To retain the openness of the spaces, whilst achieving maximum storage and functionality, the cabinetry would need to do some functional heavy lifting. Aesthetically, it needed to provide an elegant, understated backdrop onto which artwork and statement furnishing could be layered.

The starting point for the kitchen design was its floor-to-ceiling, south-facing sash window, which floods the whole room with light. Although layout options were limited, due to the bijou nature of the space, small interventions made a big difference. "We resisted over-counter cabinetry, along the more visible left-hand side of the room, to visually open up the space,” says our client. "On the opposite side of the galley, tall hand-painted cabinets, housing refrigeration and a double-width larder cupboard, reflect the natural light. A coffee station/breakfast nook felt like a borderline requirement at the time, but has become an essential, much-loved feature."

“The brief came from our client in the form of a collection of images,” says Lucy White, Barr Kitchens General Manager. "We had to do a lot in one hit, due to her travel commitments. A deep-dive meeting at Barr Group HQ allowed her to meet the workshop team, view samples, and get a good understanding of the process, as well as allowing time to discuss her practical requirements and vision for the apartment. In the kitchen, essential elements included bare timber cabinetry with a modern, fine-framed detail, light stone worktops, and a wall of hand-painted tall cupboards. Similarly, cabinetry ideas for the central and bedroom areas were discussed and honed, right down to decisions on fixtures, fittings, timber types and bespoke detailing."

“I felt supported and listened to throughout the process,” says our client. "I had a strong vision for the apartment, but as a non-design professional, I took confidence from the support of the Barr Kitchens team. Andy [Designer & Project Manager] and Lucy gently steered the design process without taking over and, as a result, the outcome stayed true to my vision but is even better than I had imagined."

True to the project's aims, the apartment is perfectly set for family home-from-home living and is currently being enjoyed by its first short-term rental guests. “We are using Domus Nova as our property management agency – they have a wonderful client base and show their select property portfolio in a carefully considered way,” says our client. "We trust them to find us the right short-let tenants – who we hope will enjoy our little Notting Hill bolthole."

We thank our client for allowing us to share her Barr Kitchens and Barr Joinery journey, and Domus Nova for supplementing our close-up cabinetry photographs by Lucy Walters with their wonderful wider apartment imagery.

The All Saints Road apartment is available for short let: https://domusnova.com/london-l...

See more of the project outcomes here.