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Project Name: The Kings Library Penthouse

Location: London, United Kingdom

Interior Designer: Joanna Wood International Interior Design

The brief for Joanna Wood International Interior Design was to transform the top floor of this former Edwardian Girls’ School into a contemporary home with five bedrooms and plenty of space for entertaining. The Penthouse was created out of the fourth storey of this purpose-built school in 1908 by Thomas J. Bailey.

Vast spaces had to be carefully reimagined and arranged around some of the original architectural features, including a glazed brick stairwell and a double height entrance hall. For Joanna Wood, the adaptation of the existing architectural features and transformation into a stunning apartment was a particular favourite aspect of this project.

The client wanted a homely living space with lots of areas for guests, modern amenities and rooms that serve several purposes. Joanna Wood International Interior Design focused on comfortable seating in the living areas; a snug with a fireplace wall as created, as well as a separate cinema room and a dining area to one side. A mixture of varying colour schemes were incorporated, along with statement pieces of art and bespoke furniture which combined seamlessly to create the perfect balance between family and formality.

The sheer size of the space is what this brief one of the biggest challenges for Joanna Wood International Interior Design. The building has very unusually proportioned rooms so everything the designers did was on a larger scale than normal. Rather than trying to create something more traditional, planning a very modern home around existing architecture created a contrast between the old and the new and that is something Joanna Wood continued throughout the apartment.

The building’s original guise is still evident in its huge chapel windows and 27ft high former assembly hall, but the warmth injected by carefully thought out interior design has created a truly unique London penthouse apartment.