Craft, and care.
Mansfield Apartment: Opening up a new chapter for a heritage apartment in W1.
A big job, and a little lift.
When you can’t park, and you can’t deliver large objects, how do you completely refurbish an apartment on the fourth floor? This was the initial challenge for Andrew and Oliver when working on Mansfield Street, in central London.
With clients based in Los Angeles, but looking to make an imminent arrival to a completed London residence, the pressure was on from day one. This was a building with a complicated concierge entry, an ancient and tiny service lift, and a narrow staircase. That meant no loading and obstructing the path of other residents - no taking large objects upstairs. It meant devising a new way to get what was needed into the apartment - including blocks of marble and all that was needed to build bespoke kitchens, bathrooms and joinery.
Andrew and Oliver’s approach was to make the large small: to take apart equipment and materials, and painstakingly reassemble them once inside. They constructed tunnels within corridors in order to protect heritage features, and only when every wall and corner was sealed would work begin.
The logistics of the job were only to get more complicated: every element of it was bespoke - from marble sinks to an extraordinary mosaic floor - produced by legendary artist Pierre Mesguich and shipped from Paris. These were individually numbered, and had to be painstakingly laid in perfect position.
Elegant inlaid joinery had to be cut off-site rather than in situ due to the access issues: “We had these special cabinets designed by Maddux out of a special material,” explains the client. “They had to be individually fabricated - and then the day they installed… they fit perfectly. All the drawers, the corners, everything was somehow completely seamlessly done.”
“They’re just the best, best people.
I would never go to anyone else now.
I don’t see a reason to.”
It all starts with the finish.
The finish required on the apartment was of an extremely high standard. There was Venetian plaster on the walls; marble flooring, Grade 2 listed cornicing on the ceilings. The kitchen was hand made from antique patinated brass and marble. The Art Deco shower screens were completely bespoke - even the brass profile around the bathrooms mirrors were crafted from scratch.
The team made every single element by hand… and negotiated deliveries of exquisite materials from all over the world - limiting the fallout when ‘three weeks’ became ‘six’. Despite the many variables and challenges, the project was on time and budget.
“The workmanship was excellent” says the client. “I’ve built a home from the ground up in Los Angeles, and know what I’m looking for. The first thing I did was look at the corners and details. EVERYTHING was perfect. There was no corner cutting. There was a lot of communication with the designers so that the plans were executed - Andrew and Oliver brought the designs alive. They did all that beautiful work.”
