Picture This

Modern-day masterpieces rub shoulders with local finds. Mixed with historic and luxe materials they all sit pretty in Dave and Gareth’s elegant Georgian home

- Clare Ennis

Dave Bennett, director at PR company Freuds, and his husband Gareth Orr, creative director at branding agency OMD UK, plus Chester the cat.

THE PROPERTY

A Grade II-listed Georgian terraced house, circa 1820, in north London. On the ground floor is a hallway, living room, dining room, kitchen, breakfast room and shower room. The first floor has an office, media room and guest bedroom/dressing room. On the second floor is the master bedroom and bathroom. There is also a patio garden with a utility shed.

MEDIA ROOM

Lighter hues come into play in this stylish upstairs living space, where the TV and gaming consoles are housed. ‘This is probably the terrace’s grandest room,’ says Gareth. ‘We wanted it to contrast with the dark colours used downstairs and to create a more relaxed, inviting vibe. The wood burner and lots of books make it cosy.’

Get the look This is the CH25 Lounge Chair by Hans J Wegner for Carl Hansen & Søn at Defa Solution. Check out Simply Sofas for a similar sofa. For an original Damien Hirst artwork, check out 1stdibs.com. On the last shelf of the left-hand bookcase is the Copycat table lamp by Michael Anastassiades for Flos available at lightandyou.com.

‘I DO LOVE A BIT OF KITSCH’ says a grinning Dave Bennett. ‘My prize possession is a hideous oil painting of a minor royal, which I bought on eBay. Unfortunately, it’s been banished to the attic!’ Dave and his husband Gareth Orr are serial art collectors and for them, rather than acquiring extra room for a growing family, it was their ever-expanding art collection that motivated them to upsize.