BEDROOM BY WALDO WORKS
ARCHITECT AND INTERIOR DESIGNER TOM BARTLETT USED CUBIST CUES AND BLOOMSBURY HUES IN THIS SOPHISTICATED SPACE
1. AN ART COLLECTOR, our client had done some restoration work at Charleston, the house artist Duncan Grant shared with Vanessa Bell in Sussex, and owned a few of his paintings. The starting point for this bedroom was a look at colouration. It’s not about creating a colour scheme to match a piece of art – more about finding a natural harmony. We borrowed from the plaster pigment-tinted world of Charleston as a starting point but wanted to ensure the end result wasn’t too decorative, hence the unusual combinations of blue, lime and pink and yellow.
2. Spaces should have a story that guides every decision. Here, it’s the interplay of the Charleston hues with the Christopher Farr Omega Workshop rug. This is the most important element in the room – and the biggest investment. We looked at the pattern of repeating circles framed by squares and re-emphasised this story in the circular pendant, the artwork above the bed and the shape of the bed itself. 3. WE PICKED OUT or designed much of the furniture in this bedroom. Unusually for contemporary designers, we like four-poster beds but stripped of details. This one is made of steamed oak that is lacquered on the inside to give a slight colour variation. The bedside tables are our interpretation of a Georgian two-tiered design, while the Aldo Rossi roll-top carteggio introduces a hint of the 1980s.
4. This bedroom is on the lower ground floor, so it was important to maintain the quality of light as much as possible, which is why we chose the lemon-yellow fabric. People make the mistake of choosing dark fabrics for curtains, not realising that it will darken the room.
■ Tom Bartlett founded Waldo Works with Sasha von Meister and Andrew Treverton over 10 years ago; together they are known for creating deeply comforting interiors which have resonance.
Waldo Works, 020 7242 4681, waldoworks.com