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Tech & Design

Spring decor ideas from an heiress' London home

STORYJacqueline Tsang
The lounge wallpaper, St Laurent, was created after Yves Saint Laurent’s wallpaper in his home in Paris. The velvet couch is also from de Gournay. The marble floor is custom made. ‘Nothing is fragile, a glass of whine or a dog can end up in the couch without problem,’ says Hannah Gurney of de Gournay.
The lounge wallpaper, St Laurent, was created after Yves Saint Laurent’s wallpaper in his home in Paris. The velvet couch is also from de Gournay. The marble floor is custom made. ‘Nothing is fragile, a glass of whine or a dog can end up in the couch without problem,’ says Hannah Gurney of de Gournay.
Architecture and design

Wallcoverings, animals and seemingly incompatible objects are the essence of Gurney’s unique home

 

It’s hard not to mention the elephant in the room when it’s right there in the hall. There are also peacocks, exotic birds we can’t even name, all amid jewel-hued backgrounds of green, blue and dusty pink. Welcome to the home of Hannah Cecil Gurney. 

Gurney was only two years old when her father, Claud Cecil Gurney, founded the de Gournay wallpaper brand in the basement of their home in Kensington, back in 1986. Today, de Gournay is a household name worldwide, renowned for its fantastical wallcoverings, which depict wondrous, exotic worlds with all manner of flora and fauna. Having grown up with her father’s designs, it’s no surprise that Hannah, now working on global marketing and development for the family business, has a deeply ingrained love for the company’s creations. 

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Plenty of light comes in through the large windows, and plants are everywhere. The geometric-print marble floor makes a beautiful contrast with the wallpaper.
Plenty of light comes in through the large windows, and plants are everywhere. The geometric-print marble floor makes a beautiful contrast with the wallpaper. 

“I grew up in my father’s magical fairyland with birds flying around the walls … and I love wallpaper and textiles for emotional reasons,” she says. Luckily, her husband Eddie Harden does not oppose living in “a colour shock”. 

Each room should have its own colour and mood, Like entering new worlds.
Hannah Cecil Gurney
“Eddie’s conception of good decoration is limited to a big flat screen television set, so I had to decorate from my own ideas,” Gurney explains – and what a world she has created.
The sapphire blue jewellery box stands out against the marble top of the bedside cabinet.
The sapphire blue jewellery box stands out against the marble top of the bedside cabinet.

The master bedroom is a fantasy world of rose pinks and soft lilacs, the lounge in soft hues of green and yellow, the dining room a calming shade of blue, while the kitchenette looks like the inside of a chocolate box, with gold ceilings and walls and a sapphire blue for the cabinets. 

“I can understand if other people think the combination of colours and patterns is a bit chaotic. I have a sort of crazy imagination, and I’m not an experienced decorator. Hopefully my style will develop until it’s time for our next home,” Gurney says. 
The panorama wallpaper in the hall is called ‘Early Views’ and is hand-painted, like all de Gournay wallpapers.
The panorama wallpaper in the hall is called ‘Early Views’ and is hand-painted, like all de Gournay wallpapers. 

She and her husband currently live in a two-bedroom flat by Kensington Gardens with their two dogs, but she does want to start a family, at which point she says they’ll need a bigger place. 

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