Mixing styles can sometimes be a bit of a balancing act, but in this thoughtfully redesigned family home, which effortlessly blends English and Danish influences, the result is a wonderful space that is the essence of cool, calm and comforting
HOME PROFILE
WHO LIVES HERE Kate Imogen Wood, an interior designer, stylist and brand consultant, her husband Ben Pashley, head of development for Danish department store Magasin, and sons Damon and Raf
THE PROPERTY A three-bedroom home on two floors of a traditional 19th-century corner cottage, located in Amagerbro, Copenhagen
KITCHEN
Kate made cafe-style curtains for the kitchen, hung from an aged brass pole for a traditional cottagey feel. Corian countertop in Sand, Ask & Eng. Bowl planter, Kristina Dam
KITCHEN
Ask & Eng offers an E collection kitchen that combines its own design fronts with Ikea carcasses to keep the budget down. Kate has used a panel of woven-grass cloth, from Biri Tapet, as a piece of art
KITCHEN
Kate opted for two shades of bamboo cabinetry, combining both on the kitchen island, where the book nook is in a lighter tone. Bar stools, Traevarefabrikernes
A move from the UK to Copenhagen 12 years ago saw Kate Imogen Wood and her husband Ben living in an apartment block in Christianshavn, where they stayed for five years before deciding they needed more space and character. ‘They are building a lot of new apartments in the city but we wanted a unique find, something that couldn’t be replicated,’ explains Kate, an interior designer. So when the pair found an old terrace of workers’ cottages in nearby Amagerbro, they started looking out for any that were coming up for sale.
In 2018, one of the corner properties came on the market, and while it didn’t immediately meet all their criteria, the couple were confident they could reinvent the space to make it work for them. At first glance the interior was a disappointment, distinctly lacking in period charm with a black and lime-green colour scheme, polystyrene ceiling tiles, laminate floors and plastic doors. Worst of all, a central staircase – added in the 1980s – ate up much of the space, making the whole house feel cramped and poky. ‘All the original features had been lost,’ remembers Kate. ‘There was no charm, no character, no soul. But we wanted a renovation project, so as soon as we’d bought it we started making changes.’
The obvious first step was to rip out the clunky staircase. Working with a structural architect, they replaced it with an elegant flight of steps, located far more conveniently in one corner of the room, which created a welcoming open space at the entrance, with the
