MORE IS MORE

A heady mix of styles, including art deco and baroque, were referenced by Tamsin Johnson during the renovation of this Sydney home

- RUTH CORBETT

Big isn't better,' declares interior designer, Tamsin Johnson. 'In fact, it was the small scale of this apartment that drew me to it. It gave me the opportunity to fully flex my creative muscles, and the result is something quite special.' The property under discussion is in Potts Point, a desirable Sydney neighbourhood known locally, because of its European feel, as the 'Paris End'. Housed in a contemporary block, neither the building nor its interior were remarkable. 'But there were decent bones and it was in a ten-out-of-ten location,' says Tamsin. 'I gutted it, so really it can be considered as entirely new.'

The brief wasn't strict, but Tamsin's client, a young doctor, was seeking comfort and an escape from a busy working life. 'I wanted the redesign to transport, seclude and immerse; for it to have a degree of intensity and visual nourishment for the owner,' she says. "My client also loves cooking, so the kitchen needed sophisticated function and more consideration than most, and I think it has become one of the salient features.

Known for her flair for fusing pieces from across periods and continents to create spaces that are at once beautiful and liveable, Tamsin’s projects conjure a sense of unapologetic luxury and effortless style.

For this scheme she drew inspiration from the sumptuously embellished decoration seen in European hotels of the early 1900s. ‘I love the Continental approach, where every aspect is considered and enriched with detail and intensity. The outcome steeps the owner in comfort.’