Residential — Bespoke Upholstery & Furniture
Antibes Apartment
French Riviera, Antibes
Interior Design: Lucinda Taylor
The penthouse sits above Antibes old port, between Cap d'Antibes and Juan-les-Pins. Morning light over the water is silver; by late afternoon it has deepened to gold. The town runs from medieval limestone ramparts straight to open water, and the apartment's position holds both — old town behind, the bay ahead. We approached the interior as an instrument for that view: edited, textural rather than glossy, calibrated so the panorama stays the first thing you register.
The project came through Lucinda Taylor, working with a longstanding client whose priorities are calm and beautifully made things. The brief was for a clean palette throughout, furniture that feels generous to sit in without imposing visually, and materials that hold their quality in a marine climate. Lucy's answer was a disciplined language of low, generous volumes, softened junctions and diffused finishes. Our role was to build pieces to that intent — the right posture, the right touch, and the durability to age well by the sea.
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The lounge chairs are built on kiln-dried hardwood frames with elasticated suspension and CMHR foam — the combination that delivers an immediate sink-in feel while holding a clean outline. The cover is Sanremo Ecru by Designers Guild: a tightly woven fabric that stays composed under the strong lateral light coming off the glazing. In a room this exposed to the sun, fabric reads differently hour by hour; Sanremo Ecru holds its character through all of it.
In the bedroom, the bench is upholstered in Kanoko Soba by de Le Cuona — a small-scale textured weave that introduces just enough movement to animate the neutral palette without becoming busy. The construction uses a firmer foam core with a precise, disciplined pull across the surface. Everything looks immaculate in the morning sun, which was the test we set the specification against.
Cutting plans were rotated to control fabric sheen, and seam placement was co-ordinated with the major sightlines so nothing distracts from the view. That attention is felt rather than announced — it is the difference between a space that looks calm and one that stays calm as the light moves and the space is lived in.
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The console introduces rough-sawn European oak to add grain and shadow to a palette that is otherwise very restrained. We worked through a series of control samples to arrive at the right kerf depth and spacing: the texture should read as a fine architectural shadow, not a rustic stripe. Denibbing passes were refined until the surface felt tactile without catching the hand. Only when every variable was resolved did we lock the specification.
The finished console is mitred at the corners and internally reinforced to present as a single clean form — no visible joints, no edge thickness reading. The line stays light.
The travertine top is 30 mm honed, paired with a patinated silver steel frame. The mineral figuring in the stone gives the piece its depth; the hand-aged frame picks up the last of the evening light without reflecting sharply in the day. On the surface, natural stone and aged metal. Beneath, a welded steel structure that is precisely what it needs to be.
A statement console pairs 30mm honed travertine with a patinated silver frame. The mineral figuring brings natural depth while the hand-aged lustre behaves like jewellery at dusk. The combination was chosen for its behaviour under the shifting light conditions of a Riviera penthouse, different at noon, different again as the harbour lights come on.