My Modern House: interdisciplinary designer Charlotte Taylor’s apartment near London Fields is an ever-changing expression of her creative process
Charlotte: “I moved here a year and a half ago, in September 2019. Before that, my partner and I were living in a flat in Paris which was 20 square meters – very different to this studio! We didn’t have much light, so coming here was a big, and welcome, change.
“We looked at a lot of flats in Paris before we moved back to London, but Parisian flats are known for being very small and we were having trouble renting there anyway because I was freelancing in the UK. Even though I loved Paris, I was also missing the creative energy of London and its unbeatable design scene.
“I came to London one weekend, saw this place and fell in love. We decided to move immediately – we thought, why not? I really like this area of London; it has a local, almost village-like feel to it. The local wine bar, near Netil House, is particularly great spot. I’ve lived in a few places in London before and this is by far my favourite.
“I think the natural light in this flat was the thing that attracted me the most. It was once a textile factory before being converted into flats in the ’90s, so we have these huge warehouse windows and high ceilings. It’s ruined me a bit, though, in terms of future homes – whenever we see anywhere else, all we can think about are these ceilings. They’re definitely my favourite thing.
“When we moved from Paris, we didn’t have any furniture at all. We only brought back a lamp, our books and Céline the goldfish. So it’s been a busy year of furniture collecting. Because we moved in with no furniture, we wanted everything we bought to be really special. We wanted to choose our pieces because we loved them, rather than out of necessity.
“I think we lived here for a good five months with just a sofa and a coffee table – the rest of the flat was empty. We were even putting masking tape on the floor in the shape of a dining table and eating our dinner within these masking tape borders. It was a bit ridiculous, but now we have a beautiful dining table. It’s by Charlotte Perriand, I’ve always wanted to own pieces by her. The materiality of the dining table in particular is really important to me, and I love the balance of wood mixed with metal.
“This is really the hub of the flat – we don’t love the kitchen, so this works as an extended kitchen of sorts. I love to cook but I really can’t stand the kitchen here. I wish we could make architectural changes but as we’re renting, we’re pretty restricted. In an ideal world, I’d like to redo the kitchen and bathroom, and change the floors to concrete.
“The way we use the flat is always shifting: whenever we find a spot we like, everything begins to happen there. For example, we don’t really use the living room anymore, as we use the space around the dining table instead.
“The whole space is still changing. If you come on a different week, everything will have moved around. My taste is eclectic – very eclectic! I don’t really follow any trends, I just pick pieces I like and hope they go together.
“I have a few pieces from Dello Studio, the studio which I co-own with the designer Oscar Piccolo. The curve piece used to be in Oscar’s house; we made it together for our degree show. Most of the other objects I found on eBay and at flea markets.
“Everything here has equal importance to me. This little platform was from an old theatre set. We cut the top off to turn it into a workshop. It was painted in a terrible fake marble finish, so we redid it with a white finish.
“When looking at what makes a room, I mainly look for natural light and spaciousness. Even though we have quite a lot of furniture here, I never wanted it to feel cluttered, so retaining a sense of openness has been really important to me.
“I work in a little studio upstairs, and I’m actually working on something a little different at the moment. I’ve been collecting objects – a mixture of handcrafted pieces designed by me, or fellow London-based designers, and vintage pieces – which I’ll sell at a concept store I’m launching. The objects are mainly one-off, bespoke handmade pieces, with slightly odd design features.
“I’ve got a shelf in my studio, which I built using bricks, to accommodate all these objects. However, I’ve now got so many that I need to start actually selling them off…
“The space is configured in a way that suits my work. The open living space is left free so I can spread all my drawings out and easily move them around. However, it can be difficult to separate work from home; my partner is working from home too so it can get a little loud with both of us having meetings all day. I actually signed for a little studio space yesterday.
“I think my design work is ultimately leading to my goal of becoming an architect at some point – even though I’m seriously under-qualified. But it’s a way of creating houses and interiors without being restricted.
“My taste has changed over the years. I used to be ultra-minimal, and loved the Bauhaus style, but now I’m branching out a bit.
“I think this is the first place I’ve really felt at home. I was never truly comfortable in the flats I lived in before, and never felt a connection to them. I always wanted to find somewhere better to live; whereas now, it would be very hard to move.
“I’m quite a recluse, really, and I’m happy to be at home. I usually wake up early, around 6am, and am always in the corner by the window, enjoying my morning coffee and reading the paper. The space is filled with natural light which changes throughout the day and there’s normally jazz playing.”
Charlotte, what do you think it means to live in a modern way?“For me, to live in a modern way means being able to use your space in a flexible way.”
Is there a home for sale on our website that has caught your eye?“Ferrum House. From the kitchen to the flooring, everything is perfect.”
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