form - David Heeley

selected | Lancashire home
Above: The backlit Carrara marble panel
of the luxurious island unit lends a warm
golden glow to the kitchen at night. A
Gaggenau fridge-freezer sits flush into
cabinetry, while to the left are three
backlit glass shelves – the couple’s only
concession to exposed storage
Right: The centrepiece to the Heeleys’
minimalist kitchen is a three-tonne
Zimbabwean granite island unit. To create
a casual dining area the island is teamed
with high stools. Three retro-style George
pendants from Tobias Grau cast a gentle
light onto its rich surface from above
couple’s appreciation for classic aesthetics. The chiselled edge of the island
unit recalls their repeated use of unrefined natural materials that exude
an earthy appeal and a Van Gogh print hanging on the kitchen wall hints
at their love of art.
“In fact each room in the house is dedicated to an artist,” says David,
“somewhat pretentiously,” he adds with a laugh. “There is the Mark Rothko
room, Roy Lichtenstein room, and Ian Fleming room.”
This artistic flair is captured in elements of the room, which is defined
by a stunning freestanding Philippe Starck tub framed by a mural shower
screen, plus twin washbasins set on top of a sun-bleached olive ash vanity
unit. “There is nothing worse than investing in contemporary design that
will look tired in two or three years’ time,” says David when asked about
his choice of materials. “By using timeless materials like olive ash or basalt
tiles for the walls and floors – materials that have been around for millions
of years – we hope to avoid this.”
Delivering a gentle cascade of water to their freestanding tub is a
ceiling-mounted filler, while for the basins the couple specified Jean-
Marie Massaud’s minimalist mixer tap that similarly focuses attention away
from the fitting and onto the water itself. In contrast, the Heeleys’ walk-in
shower, separated from the rest of the bathroom by a simple screen, is
dominated by a luxurious oversized showerhead.
The bedroom-bathroom suite is the result of a recent extension. “We
wanted to incorporate an unashamedly modern extention that would look
different from the rest of the house but work with it as a cohesive whole,”
explains David. Problems arose, though, when local authorities rejected
their plans for a zinc-clad barrel roof on the grounds that it was not in
keeping with the conservation area. “I agree. It’s good to conserve the best
of the old but it’s also important to add new buildings rather than make u
26 kitchens bedrooms bathrooms