It has been quite some time since I went to look around Deniz Bayern, founder of Studio Kaya, delightful home. I believe it was BC (before covid), or perhaps it was the BFFLD (break from first lockdown); either way, I couldn't be happier to be reintroduced to this ever-evolving beauty. Not only do I find Deniz's tour useful and inspiring, but I am also very taken with the photography by Christopher Horwood. Altogether they've pulled it out of the bag for a terrific Knock Knock - Enjoy!
After purchasing this house in Queens Park back in 2017, we have made considerable changes to it, including a renovation in 2019. It is now home to me, my husband Konstantin (goes by Koko), our 11-month-old son Alexis and a Goldendoodle named Chilli.
Our living room is the first space you see as you enter through the door is split into two sides by geometric internal curtains. One side is the formal sitting room with a fireplace and a bar where we entertain, and the other is the lounge area with a big sofa from Loaf overlooking our tv. I also have my bureau on that side. It is tiny, but it is all I need because I love working tucked in a corner.
I delight in colours that are difficult to explain. The in-between, muddy, washed-out tones. This is why I picked this wall colour: Castle Grey by Farrow & Ball. It changes throughout the day from a blueish-grey to a muddy green depending on the light.
After noticing how well this paint colour goes with the brown hues of our exposed brick fireplace, I chose to decorate the room with furniture made of mahogany. Such as the antique Victorian planter we repurposed as a bar & the Empire daybed (both hand me downs from Koko’s family), and the Georgian bureau from Kernow Furniture.
While the midcentury cabinet stands out in style from the other mahogany furniture, it makes up for it in colour. I also didn’t want the room to be too antique heavy. To lighten the mood, I added some more contemporary pieces such as the travertine coffee table, boucle midcentury armchairs from Forest London, 80s wall lamp from The Peanut Vendor, jute rugs from West Elm and plain linen curtains. This is how I like to work when creating interior schemes. Whether it is the colour palette, furniture style or material choice, I try to approach every scheme with a careful mixture to create a subtle yet soulful ambience.
I like the idea of a house that evolves with you. One that changes over time layer by layer. That is why this house will probably never feel complete to me. It looks quite different now since the House & Garden feature was published only a few months ago. Since then, the green kitchen has been transformed to grey, caned kitchen cabinets were added for more storage, and the dining area changed into a living/dining setting as we tend to spend most of the day in this space as a family.
The kitchen door which leads onto the hallway was introduced during the renovations a few years ago. The design was inspired by utilitarian restaurant swing doors, with their round glass windows reimagined for a more traditional setting. It serves as a peephole from the hallway into the garden. The high cabinets are spray painted Ikea PAX cabinets with custom caned doors. I have yet to decide on tiles to go below as splashback… I like to live free from clutter as much as possible and tend to store most things where I can’t see them. Our Nymphenburg porcelain plates and Koko’s Japanese knife collection is an exception to this rule.
Our dining room was added during the renovations. Victorian garden rooms and conservatories inspired the design. In Summer, we have barbeques outside, and the bi-fold doors always stay open overlooking the garden.
Our bedroom was originally painted a creamy yellow. I hated. When I repainted, I chose this dark deep green shade (Norway Spruce by Valspar) and have never looked back. In my opinion, a bedroom should always be calm and cosy. This paint colour does precisely that.
As you enter the bedroom, the first thing you see is the 19th-century bamboo dresser, one of my best eBay finds. Next to it under the round mirror, I have added two low Ikea units for extra storage and covered it with a custom skirted fabric in black & white gingham.
I stumbled upon this Victorian bobbin serving table that is now our vanity on Kernow Furniture’s website. After noticing that it fits perfectly into this corner, I purchased it, got the legs shortened and repurposed it as a vanity. It was a mission finding the right sized basins, and there wasn’t enough space to install surface mounted taps, but it was well worth the hassle as this room is now one of my favourite spaces in the house. The tiles from Popham Design were inspired by the bobbin legs, and so was the globe light from Pooky.
Huge Thank You To Deniz For That Wonderful Tour, To Follow Studio Kaya Click Here & To See Her Website Click Here.
Thanks Also To Christ Horwood For The Great Photographs!
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