{"id":19489,"date":"2023-03-10T09:30:45","date_gmt":"2023-03-10T08:30:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesandantiques.com\/?p=28328"},"modified":"2023-03-10T10:36:42","modified_gmt":"2023-03-10T09:36:42","slug":"an-edwardian-home-in-london-decorated-in-shades-of-blue","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/an-edwardian-home-in-london-decorated-in-shades-of-blue\/","title":{"rendered":"An Edwardian home in London decorated in shades of blue"},"content":{"rendered":"

For interior designer Krystyna Martin-Dominguez, inky shades work as a moody backdrop for her antiques and vintage pieces, picked up in Poland and beyond. Photographs Penny Wincer <\/p>

By Jo Leevers\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Friday, 10 March 2023 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

The letter K, in various forms and fonts, appears throughout Krystyna Martin-Dominguez\u2019s home. An elegant serif version salvaged<\/a> from a shop sign hangs in the kitchen, while another, made by her father, adds a rustic touch to the living room. \u2018I\u2019ve picked them up here and there, but I never buy for the sake of it. I have to love the things I find \u2013 they have a sentimental value,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n

The oversized Ks make more sense when you discover that her husband is called Kristian and their children are Konstantin and Klara, but the appeal for Krystyna is more than merely personal. \u2018Typographically, it\u2019s a dynamic letter \u2013 it looks as if it\u2019s about to stride off!\u2019 she adds with a smile.<\/p>\n

Just as Krystyna only buys an oversized letter K if it captures her imagination, the antique and vintage furniture in her Edwardian home in south London has also been subject to the same careful consideration. \u2018I prefer to wait for the right thing to come along and I only buy pieces I have space for,\u2019 she explains.<\/p>\n

This measured approach ties in with Krystyna\u2019s aversion to \u2018fast furniture\u2019: the mass-produced flat-pack equivalent of fast fashion. \u2018I hate the idea of a throwaway culture,\u2019 says Krystyna. Brought up on an air force base in Poland, recycling was a way of life rather than a hobby. \u2018Growing up in a communist country, throwing anything away felt like a crime. Everything was reused, or passed on to someone else. And what we didn\u2019t have, we\u2019d make.\u2019<\/p>\n

You might also like<\/strong> a bright, vintage-filled Edwardian home<\/a><\/p>\n

Krystyna\u2019s parents even built their own home and, being the eldest child, she often helped her father. \u2018It made me very practical. I\u2019ll always have a go at making something we need, whether it\u2019s a curtain or a light.\u2019 This can-do attitude came into its own when she and Kristian bought their home. The Edwardian<\/a> property had only had two owners since it was built and was entirely unmodernised. Krystyna\u2019s BA in Spatial and Interior Design<\/a> gained at Chelsea College of Arts and her love of British architecture also informed her approach.<\/p>\n

\u2018I was interested in how an Edwardian house could be adapted for modern family life,\u2019 she says. \u2018Many of us love the character of older houses, but their architecture is arranged for the way people lived then.\u2019 This means privacy and closed doors rather than flow and openness.<\/p>\n

Krystyna\u2019s solution was to rework the ground floor by adding a kitchen-diner<\/a> extension and creating a square arch between the two halves of the living room. \u2018The footprint of the house is quite wide, so the proportions of the extension feel in keeping with the architecture. It just gives it a squarer feel,\u2019 she adds.<\/p>\n

The house was also entirely rewired and replumbed and walls were insulated and replastered. The staircase was refurbished and authentic timber sash windows were reinstalled. Krystyna is a firm believer in taking a house back to its bones to ensure the basic structure is sound. \u2018I would never just decorate. I like to know that my family and my clients are living in healthy, damp-free homes,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n

You might also like <\/strong>a colourful Edwardian home inspired by Florence<\/a><\/p>\n

When it came to the decorating<\/a> and furnishing stage, Krystyna took the opportunity to indulge in a bit of repurposing. \u2018I like giving old objects new functions,\u2019 she explains. \u2018So a Victorian clock<\/a> case became a bathroom cabinet and we use an antique marble-topped dresser as a pot cupboard in the kitchen.\u2019 A Roman blind in Klara\u2019s room was made from a tablecloth embroidered by Krystyna\u2019s grandmother when she was 16.<\/p>\n

\u2018Vintage fabrics and furniture come with a story, but most of all it comes with amazing craftsmanship. These pieces will outlive us,\u2019 she adds. What\u2019s more, by using antiques, Krystyna has put together a look that\u2019s individual. \u2018I enjoy knowing that I won\u2019t walk into a neighbour\u2019s house and see exactly the same chair, light and rug,\u2019 she smiles.<\/p>\n

On trips to visit family in Poland, Krystyna is always on the lookout for interesting pieces. In the dining area, a mirrored 1960s cabinet was a gift from her mother and, in the living room, a marble-topped brass side table came from a Polish antiques shop<\/a>. \u2018The quality of the marble is incredible and it\u2019s a very practical surface,\u2019 she says. Then there\u2019s a handsome carved table that her father helped her to restore, which shines out against the deep blue of the living room walls.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no coincidence that many of the rooms are decorated in shades of blue. \u2018For as long as I can remember, I have always loved the colour<\/a>,\u2019 she says. \u2018As a child, I would have dressed in blue every day.\u2019 From an interior design perspective, the hue has a calming effect and, Krystyna believes, suits the era of their home. \u2018In Edwardian times, along with green, blue was a popular choice for decorating.\u2019<\/p>\n

From the dark navy in the living room to a duck egg in the main bedroom, blue also works well with the antique dark wood furniture that Krystyna has found, restored and polished up. \u2018With blue, you can put different shades together and it always works,\u2019 she says. \u2018It feels harmonious, which is what we all want in a home.\u2019<\/p>\n

\""FrancemaryRd_living_023\"<\/picture><\/div>
Morris & Co\u2019s Acanthus wallpaper frames the view through to the living room from the TV room. The wingback chair is an heirloom, reupholstered in blue velvet. Both rugs are vintage, bought in Germany. \u2018I\u2019ve found the best quality vintage rugs there,\u2019 Krystyna says.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""KrystynaMartin-Dominingez_portrait_036\"<\/picture><\/div>
Krystyna Martin-Dominguez, an interior designer who runs K Space (k-space.co.uk), lives here with her husband Kristian, who works in finance, and their son Konstantin (9) and daughter Klara (7).<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_living_042\"<\/picture><\/div>
Blue acts as a unifying shade in the living room. The chimney breast and walls are painted in Royal Navy by Little Greene. The hearth tiles are G\u00fcell-1 by VIVES. The Tamara de Lempicka print is a poster version of the first Valentine\u2019s Day card that Kristian gave to Krystyna.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_living_060\"<\/picture><\/div>
Krystyna found the carved table on a Polish antiques website and the vintage Eames DSS chair at Bambino in Crystal Palace.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_living_065\"<\/picture><\/div>
A reproduction of a historic map of Paris from Old Folding Maps hangs above shelving in the living room.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_hallway_078\"<\/picture><\/div>
In the hall, geometric tiles from VIVES echo the overall scheme.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_living_031\"<\/picture><\/div>
The curtain dividing the living room was made from old Romanian army blankets. The antique side table is French and the navy sofa is from Sofa.com.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_hallway_097\"<\/picture><\/div>
The old pub bar stools came from Aladdin\u2019s Cave in Lewisham and the kitchen was custom made. The letter K is from a salvaged shop sign.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_hallway_122\"<\/picture><\/div>
An antique chest of drawers with a mirror makes the room feel less \u2018kitcheny\u2019.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""FrancemaryRd_hallway_088\"<\/picture><\/div>
The vintage Eames DSS stacking chairs came from Bambino and the dining table is an Ikea worktop on a locally welded metal base. A reproduction of an 1847 map of London is from Old Folding Maps and the 1960s mirrored cabinet is from Poland.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""KrystynaMartin-Dominingez_bedroom_006\"<\/picture><\/div>
Although one wall of the bedroom is papered with a quirky design featuring dinosaurs, Krystyna has painted the rest of the room, including the ornate Edwardian fire surround, in a calm shade of grey that pulls the disparate elements together. <\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""KrystynaMartin-Dominingez_bedroom_003\"<\/picture><\/div>
The vintage G Plan chest of drawers was an eBay find. Krystyna bought the vintage chair in a Polish junk shop and reupholstered it herself.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""KrystynaMartin-Dominingez_bedroom_008\"<\/picture><\/div>
A quirky House of Hackney wallpaper gives the main bedroom a stylish twist. The marble-topped bedside table is antique.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""KrystynaMartin-Dominingez_bedroom_013\"<\/picture><\/div>
The vintage bamboo mirror is from Wild Horses in Forest Hill.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
\""KrystynaMartin-Dominingez_bathroom_017\"<\/picture><\/div>
A Victorian clock case has been painted to make a bathroom cabinet. The French classroom poster depicts oceanography and came from Old Folding Maps.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div> <\/body><\/html>\n
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