Award winning Interior Design firm Issy Rush Jansen Ltd create elegant timeless interiors for private and commercial clients in the Uk and abroad. Having recently re-located from West London to Oxford, we caught up with Issy to ask her for some top tips when redesigning your home.
"Firstly, your main priority is to work with building contractors who you either know and trust or who come through a trusted recommendation. My company, Issy Rush Jansen Ltd is aligned with a RIBA qualified architect, a chartered structural engineer and a fantastic multi-disciplinary contractual team, who deliver projects of the highest standard, on time and within budget. However, often we are called in when another building company has not done or completed competently what they set out to do, so my advice would be, to anyone starting out on an extension or building work, to always always always go for a recommendation or through a trusted source.
Secondly, functionality - of course a home ideally looks and feels wonderful, well balanced and well proportioned, whilst reflecting who the family are, and how they want to live - but the adage that design is not just how it looks but how it works is absolutely true - your space needs to function fantastically and provide you with the absolute best possibilities of usage. This means time spent at the front end in the design period really thinking about the functionality of the design will pay you back no end in the long run.
Thirdly, aesthetics. The best interiors, like the best people, have integrity and when working on a listed or period property I work hard to retain the best of the building's period features whilst combining them with more contemporary finishes. Creating a design which is sympathetic to the buildings history whilst reflecting a more modern approach to living is a sure fire way to create something with real longevity. Trends come and go, but a home which is elegant and paired back with rich layers of colour and texture and a mixture of both classical and contemporary elements will always look beautiful no matter what the season. I would suggest choosing items which you love and which reflect your own style, from places you have enjoyed being. I source from well known galleries as well as vintage markets, Lots road antiques shops, Rue de Lille in Paris and Pimlico road, as well as hunting for fabrics at Chelsea harbour."
