Bright Future

Design entrepreneur Sophie Garnier and her husband Ralph turned their dark basement flat into a light, peaceful sanctuary

- Serena Fokschaner

For most of the year, home for Sophie Garnier is a rooftop apartment in hectic, colourful Yangon in Myanmar, where she collaborates with local artisans on designs for her homewares brand, Kalinko. But every few months she jumps on a plane and heads back to London to her apartment in the basement of a stucco-clad townhouse.

RELAXED ATMOSPHERE

‘As I slide the key in the door I breathe deeply, because after Myanmar, London feels so peaceful,’ says Sophie. From the pigeon-grey hall with its cheerful prints, the light-filled corridor draws your eye to the greenery of the garden, which, at 60 feet long, was the reason why Sophie and her husband Ralph (who also works in Myanmar) bought the place. The garden aside, there were few redeeming features. ‘The ceilings were too low and the layout was impractical, with a small sitting room at the front and two poky bedrooms,’ says Sophie. ‘The kitchen was a dark galley and the conservatory leaked. And yet, despite all that, it had a good, calm feeling to it.’