See London designer Beata Heuman’s whimsical English style
The heavens were absolutely smiling on 21-year-old student Beata Heuman in 2004 when — disillusioned by the interior design course she was studying in London — she landed a job interview with one of the lions of British design, Nicky Haslam. Beata admitted she didn’t even know who he was, but Nicky, always a rebel, wasn’t snubbed and took a chance on the Swedish expat.
Over the next nine years, mentored by both Nicky and his number two, Canadian designer Colette van den Thillart, Beata developed her own theatrical style (think bold colors, layered patterns and timeless furniture). In a step she called a natural progression, she launched her eponymous firm in 2013, taking on projects such as Chelsea restaurant farm Girl, London townhouses, a Nantucket clapboard house and a new-build in Hamburg. The firm was included on Architectural Digest’s prestigious top 100 in 2020 and 2021.
To additionally her commitment to craftsmanship, Beata had been selling artisanal items on a small scale considering that 2015, and unveiled her e-commerce site, Shoppa.beataheuman.com, in 2019. Offerings include sumptuous velvet pillows, marbled wallpaper, lighting, and brass coasters and hand-forged hardware produced by small, independent Swedish, British or Italian makers.
2021 marked another major milestone in Beata’s career: the launch of her first book, Every room must Sing. The book showcases 10 of her projects, including her own 1870 townhouse in London’s Hammersmith neighborhood, where Beata folds in bespoke items like a brass-trellised, confectionary-inspired glass ceiling in the kitchen — an ornate backdrop for her Dodo Egg pendant. In our March 2022 issue, we asked Beata about her journey from a fresh-faced junior designer’s assistant to running her own 11-person firm, and how she brings a fantastical element to eclectic British decorating.
Keep scrolling to see what she had to say!
Source: courtesy of ©Beata Heuman: Every room must Sing, Rizzoli new York, 2021
Beata added the wall, sliding door and bookshelves in her living room.
House & Home: What did you take away from your experience with Nicky and Colette?
Beata Heuman: I like taking risks and doing the unexpected. I’ve always been drawn to that way of creating, and Nicky does that in spades. He’s irreverent; he likes doing the thing you expect him not to do, and he’s not precious about what materials you can use. Nicky knows about convention but doesn’t take much note of it. You always hope clients will think a project looks amazing, but I admit there’s a real thrill that comes from wondering whether it will be understood and well received.
Photographer: Simon Brown
Source: courtesy of ©Beata Heuman: Every room must Sing, Rizzoli new York, 2021
Designer: Beata Heuman
The mural in the bedroom of Beata’s daughters, Gurli and Alma, depicts rabbits sipping martinis.
H&H: how do you use those lessons when designing?
BH: They taught me how to execute tough tasks but also how to have fun. I was having martinis with Nicky and Colette at the Carlyle hotel in new York when I fell in love with the Ludwig Bemelmans mural in the bar. When I was pregnant with my daughter Gurli, I used it as inspiration to create a magical room for her with a mural that included great local details like the top of Hammersmith Bridge. I love that contrast of the childish motif and the rabbits who are drinking, smoking and being a bit naughty.
Photographer: Simon Brown
Source: courtesy of ©Beata Heuman: Every room must Sing, Rizzoli new York, 2021
Designer: Beata Heuman
In Beata’s kitchen, her Dodo Egg pendants draw the eye up to a glass ceiling inspired by patisserie ceilings in Stockholm. Blue cabinets hide the fridge.
H&H: how would you describe your style in one sentence?
BH: Imaginative, considered and fresh.
Photographer: Simon Brown
Source: courtesy of ©Beata Heuman: Every room must Sing, Rizzoli new York, 2021
Designer: Beata HeumanBu çizim odasındaki Seagrass panelleri dekoratif bir sınır ile süslenmiştir. Beata’nın LuckDragon taburesi, antik Roma’da kullanılan kürecik taburelere dayanmaktadır.
H & H: Herhangi bir imza hamleniz var mı?
BH: Pençe ayaklarını severim ve neredeyse bir kişiliğe sahip mobilya parçaları veriyorum. Genellikle ısmarlama mobilya yaparız; Ortalama mağazalarda çok fazla düz çizgi elde edersiniz, bu yüzden dalgalı çizgiler ve eğrileri tanıtmayı seviyorum. Tüm projelerimiz ısmarlama parçalar veya bir kerelik ile doldurulur. Kendimi tekrarlamayı sevmiyorum – evrimleşmeye çalışıyorum.
Fotoğrafçı: Simon Brown
Kaynak: Nezaket © Beata Heuman: Her oda şarkı söylemeli, Rizzoli New York, 2021
Tasarımcı: Beata Heuman
Ağartılmış bir meşe zemini, doğal mermer ve rustik tavan, bu banyoyun eğimli tavan ve mercan-motif kolyesinin tiyatrosu.
H & H: Nerede eşyalarınız?
BH: Antika pazarlarına gitmeyi ve müthiş fotoğrafları olan 1stdibs gibi sitelerden ilham almayı seviyorum. Eğer ısmarlama rotaya gitmiyorsak, tamamen özel ve makul fiyatlı bir şey elde etmek için vintage doğru yer çekiyoruz. İdeal olarak, eviniz bir veya iki kişi üzerinde dekore edilmiş gibi görünmelidir.
Fotoğrafçı: Simon Brown
Kaynak: Nezaket © Beata Heuman: Her oda şarkı söylemeli, Rizzoli New York, 2021
Tasarımcı: Beata Heuman
Beada’nın favori bulduğunu keşfedin!
Fotoğrafçı: Chris Gloag
Beata’nın Dodo yumurta kolye, boyalı pirinç palmiye yaprakları ile taçlandırılmıştır.
Kaynak: shoppa.beataheuman.com
“Bütün yatağım Mille Notti. Bezemeler olmadan beyazı severim ve pamuk yaşla daha iyi olur “diyor.
Kaynak: mille-notti.com
“Bloom Berry’de Terry Due Baly tarafından giyerim. Parlak gibi ama oldukça yoğun pigmentli. ”
Kaynak: byterry.com
“En sevdiğim restoran Londra’daki Kafe Nehridir.”
Kaynak: Kafe Nehri
Bu tepsiler İsveç’te sürdürülebilir kaynaklı bir huş yapılır. “I love marbleized patterns and use them a lot,” she says.
Source: /shoppa.beataheuman.com
“I wear Eau D’Italie perfume created for the 50th anniversary of Le Sirenuse, the popular hotel in Positano on the Amalfi Coast.”
Source: La Sirenuse