North London Contemporary Mansion
The Brief
Our brief was to design the lighting both internally and externally for the developers of this newly constructed 6000 square foot property in North London. We were also invited by the developer to design the light to the extensive landscaped external grounds consisting of a basketball court, swimming pool and pool house and numerous landscaped lawns and terraces.
The Challenge
Our main challenge during this project was the advent of covid 19 meaning site visits were not possible as the building works progressed. The internal hallways and main staircase were volumous and needed to be lit with care to create a homely atmosphere as well as creating focal points. ​
The large open plan glazed area incorporating the kitchen, dining room and formal living room again needed careful consideration to prevent the scale overwhelming any atmosphere and mood enhancing lighting we designed for the space.
THE Solution
The ground floor was very large with a statement sweeping staircase in the entrance hall which we side lit, punctuating most of the internal doorways with uplights for maximum effect. In the formal sitting room we softly lit the bar area with linear lights to create an intimate feel and in the living room increased the perceived ceiling height with coffer lighting and window sill uplights. A slot detail light was inserted over the long glazed windows encompassing the kitchen, dining room and formal sitting room which enabled us to link the length of that elevation with light. This gave the space continuity but we also zoned the particular areas for different functions.
The property also had a lower ground internal basketball court, gym, games room and bar where we were asked to create an industrial feel. We designed a decorative ‘It was all a dream’ light box to go over the bar for real impact and introduced random sized linear lights to the walls and ceilings in the stairwells to bring an urban vibe to the space.
The Final Result
This client has a young family, and we created a very comfortable home which is fun, and in some place’s eccentric! The client is an avid basketball fan, and we were asked to design a ‘lit’ storage wall of trainers in his dressing room up on the first floor. The Master Bedroom was lit sparingly keeping the bedroom lighting quite simple but showcasing the master bathroom with layered lighting including uplights, slot detail lighting, niche detail lighting, floor washers and linear lighting to the vanity.
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We designed The Lower Ground Games Room Bar box pendant with space to store glasses below whimsically inscribed It was all a dream.
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Externally, the lighting circuitry was zoned, enabling the clients to only light certain parts of the grounds and pool area at a time. We designed the water feature lighting at the front to RGB colour change and floor recessed uplights to showcase beautiful olive trees in pots either side of the front door. The external basketball court was lit with high output Delta Polsano for even illumination.
We have a very good relationship with Griggs Developers, and they are a dream to work for, always efficient and thorough and appreciate the value added of good lighting design.
Testimonial
“Suzy has managed to light our large family home in a tactful and original manner, creating completely different spaces and vibes with her choices. She’s extremely professional, polite and quick to help while working with the interior designers, the client and the builders all at the same time. Luxurious in some rooms while value engineering in others as well as helping light the garden and exterior. Suzy is highly recommended. Thanks!”
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BEN STARR. CLIENT
