Interior in a dark palette

About the project

Joinery and interiors in a restrained dark palette, with brass-toned detailing.

The challenge

Original plasterwork makes modern joinery more demanding: cornices and mouldings prevent furniture from sitting flat against the wall, while every new element has to respect the existing architectural detail. The dark joinery needed to feel integral rather than added later.

The solution

Rather than compete with the plasterwork, the joinery took on its language. The headboard was set into a frame of wall mouldings and closed with arches, so it reads as part of the room's architecture. The study shelving uses a light brass-toned structure instead of solid sides, so the dark wall behind it stays visible.

Materials

Dark panelling and a brass-toned shelving structure. Stone-patterned shelf backs with greenish veining. A patterned upholstered headboard in a cool tone, fluted bedside units and flooring with a geometric timber pattern.

The outcome

The new joinery neither imitates the period nor tries to cover it. The plasterwork became a backdrop against which the dark volumes and brass-toned details read as a deliberate layer rather than a compromise.