This London apartment gives a nod to the subtle luxury of five-star hotels.

London-based studio Olga Ashby Interiors recently completed a London apartment for a family of six that exudes all the luxury of a five-star hotel. Located in St John’s Wood at the north-west end of Regent’s Park, the 1,830 square-foot property was in poor condition, so its owners – a couple with two young children – hired Ashby and her team to give it new life.

“The floor plan didn’t work for a modern family, but my clients saw the potential in the space and were ready for a long architectural and interior design journey,” she says.

“The one thing we all really loved was the view from the windows. The view outdoors is so green you can hardly believe you are in the middle of a megalopolis like London.”

The clients are avid travellers who often stay in five-star hotels all around the world. Because the pandemic limited their ability to travel, they wanted a home where they could enjoy all the pleasures and comforts of the types of hotels they love to visit.

To help Ashby understand what they wanted, they invited her to one of their favourite London hotels for a drink and explained they were looking for a home with an atmosphere not dissimilar to that of a hotel. In order to accommodate her clients’ wishes, she reconfigured the floor plan of the original property.

“We had to do a gut renovation because the original layout could not accommodate the open-plan kitchen-living-dining the client wanted. We demolished some load-bearing walls and installed steel beams to create a layout that would work with what they had in mind,” she says.

This was certainly a challenge. It took about six months to get the renovation plans approved, but even then, the demolition of certain walls was not allowed, so she found innovative ways to work around it.

“We turned the wall separating the dining from the living area into a double-sided fireplace. We wrapped this load-bearing wall in bespoke joinery and a marble fireplace, then added suede panels on one side and a TV stand with shelving units on the other,” she explains.

The new floor plan divided the space into a social zone – comprised of a foyer and hallway, a powder room, kitchen, dining and living area that are connected within a large open plan space – and a private family wing.

Most luxury hotels have an impressive entrance, so Ashby created a grand sense of arrival in the hallway with marble floors and counter tops, brass hardware, bespoke mirrors, and wall sconces from Heathfield & Co.

One of her favourite parts of the apartment is the kitchen, which has a small hidden bar with a wine fridge and a bay window sofa that the younger kids – who can’t get up on the high counter stools just yet – love to use.

Veering off from the hallway, one can access the family wing, which includes three en suite bedrooms. To create plenty of storage in the master bedroom, Ashby opened the wardrobe up on both sides to create a corridor-like space that enhances circulation. Within the wardrobe is a dressing section for the husband, and another for the wife.

In the compact master bathroom is a large window that receives plenty of morning sunlight, so she created a countertop and hidden storage within the deep windowsill underneath this window to maximise space without obstructing the light flow.

To recreate the pared back aesthetics of five-star hotels, she chose a monochromatic colour scheme and introduced splashes of colour with artworks such as Andy Warhol’s “The Nun” to bring a touch humour to the luxurious classical interior concept.

“We used monochrome as a base to allow the client’s art collection to shine. The monochrome palette will work well if the clients decide to add to their art collection or replace their current artwork with new pieces,” she says.

The couple had also requested stain resistant fabrics so the furniture would not get damaged by their children’s food spillage or sticky fingers, so Ashby chose carpets and upholstery fabrics that were highly stain resistant.

“The storage is well hidden, but vast, and all the upholstery and wallpapers are easy to clean. Despite the plush and luxurious aesthetics, the design of this home is incredibly practical,” she says.