Romanos Brihi, Co-Founder of Studio Vero, believes taste isn’t created, it’s uncovered. Here, the maximalist designer opens the doors to his London home to talk about mixing eras and objects, trusting instincts over trends and why irritation reveals more than admiration. By Rosalind Sack
ROMANOS BRIHI’S ART-FILLED VICTORIAN TERRACE IN KENSINGTON, LONDON. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
Romanos Brihi co-founded London-based interior design practice Studio Vero with lifelong friend Venetia, and built a design philosophy around one simple belief: that personality trumps perfection. A self-confessed maximalist, his own London home is a layered, ever-evolving collection of art, antiques and objects gathered over years rather than assembled to a brief.
Ahead of a new season of projects, we sat down with Romanos to talk about the difference between taste and trend, why the best rooms are never quite finished, and how to furnish a home that feels unmistakably like you.
Do you think everyone has an inherent personal style, or does it have to be developed?
I don’t think you really develop a personal style so much as excavate it. It’s already there, buried under everyone else’s opinions about what you’re supposed to like. I think it’s really about learning to trust your own instincts and noticing what you naturally respond to – whether that’s a colour, a piece of furniture or the way a room makes you feel.
Culture helps with that, but not in the way people tend to assume. Immersing yourself in art, theatre and other people’s homes doesn’t create your taste, but it gives you more to look at, question and respond to. Over time, you start to recognise the things you instinctively gravitate towards. Living in London, I’ve got endless material for that – there’s always somewhere to go or something new to see.
If someone wanted to understand their own taste better, where should they start?
I think it’s easier to work out what you hate first. Walk into any room and you’ll instantly clock what’s making you uncomfortable: bad lighting, a cold colour, furniture that’s too small. Taste often reveals itself faster through irritation than admiration. Once you know what you can’t stand, your likes tend to fall into place around it.
It’s still worth travelling, visiting galleries, wandering antique markets. All of that helps. But I’d trust your gut reactions – good and bad – over any amount of careful looking.
Are there certain questions people should ask themselves before buying pieces for their home?
I never ask myself whether I need something, because I definitely don’t. My house is already bursting at the seams!
For me it’s much more of a feeling than a decision. If you fall in love with something, there’s a personal connection there, and I think you should trust it. With a sofa or a dining table, obviously, you have to think about whether it physically fits. But beyond the practicalities, I don’t believe in too many rules. You have to live surrounded by things you love. There’s very little point buying something simply because you think it ‘goes’.
ROMANOS WORKS CLOSELY WITH A TRUSTED FRAMER TO ENSURE THAT EVERY PIECE OF ART IS A ONE-OFF. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
How do you know when a room feels authentic, rather than simply well styled?
You can tell immediately when a room has been staged. To me, an authentic room has layers: books, art, interesting textiles, decorative objects and always a few antiques. Not everything matches for the sake of matching, and not everything arrived at the same time.
That’s how you escape that slightly Instagram-perfect look. A mix of things from different periods, places and moments in your life is what makes a room feel individual, and much more special.
You’ve created a home that feels deeply personal. How do you encourage clients to trust your instincts instead of worrying about whether something ‘goes’?
That trust builds with experience, and with the relationship you form with a client. We’re lucky that people generally come to Studio Vero because they already know our work and are on board with how we approach interiors. Someone after a stark, contemporary look probably isn’t knocking on our door in the first place.
My home means a great deal to me, but I don’t want our clients’ homes to look like mine. We want to create something that means just as much to them. No two Studio Vero projects should ever look the same, because no two clients are the same.
I’m a maximalist, and I’m well aware not everyone wants quite as much ‘stuff’ as I do. It has to be tailored to how they live, what they love and the things they want around them.
What advice would you give someone who’s afraid of making expensive mistakes?
Hire an interior designer! But genuinely, the mistake I see most often is scale. Furniture is nearly always too small rather than too big: an undersized rug, a tiny coffee table floating in the middle of a room, a sofa that doesn’t have enough presence. It throws the whole room off. Measure everything properly, and if you’re torn between two sizes, I’d almost always go bigger.
Hiring an interior designer is an investment, and we’re not in the business of creating homes that will feel dated in three years’ time. We create timeless interiors that evolve with the people living in them: rooms they can add to, rearrange, reupholster and live with for years.
A CUSTOM CURVED BOUCLE SOFA PROVIDES A COSY SEAT BY THE FIRE. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
What advice would you give someone who wants to start collecting but doesn’t know where to begin?
Take the pressure off and make it enjoyable. Go to an antiques market for the day, take your partner or your best friend, have a good lunch and see what catches your eye. Venetia and I love nothing more than scouring a market together.
We’re rather spoilt because we’re constantly sourcing for clients, so my hobby has essentially become my job. Even when I’m on holiday, one of the first things I do is find out where the local antiques markets are.
Particularly at Christmas, I think finding an old or one-off gift for someone is incredibly special. It doesn’t have to be valuable. It just has to feel as though you found it for them.
How do you mix works of different styles and periods without them competing?
There’s no formula for it. My own home is a complete mix of periods and styles, and that’s exactly what makes it interesting.
It comes naturally, but you’re still thinking about the relationship between things: the materials, proportions, colours and textures. You’re combining rather than matching. If everything is from the same period, or chosen because it matches, you risk losing that sense of personality.
Has your home evolved naturally over time, or did you have a clear vision from the outset?
A bit of both. I had a very clear idea of how I wanted the house to feel from the outset, but I also always knew it would never really be finished.
It was meant to be a home that could take a growing collection, so it’s evolved naturally as I’ve found things. The vision hasn’t really changed. There’s just more to it now.
What makes a home feel welcoming rather than simply beautiful? And what do you hope people feel when they walk into your home?
Comfort, first and foremost. Lighting is hugely important: lamps on, fires lit, flowers out, but also genuinely comfortable upholstery and lots of different places to sit or perch. I always notice that when I go to someone else’s home. You want people to come in and immediately feel they can settle in.
But I also love a sense of curiosity. When someone comes to my home for the first time, I’ll often find them wandering around looking at things, picking something up, or asking me about a painting or an object. I love that. I want people to feel comfortable enough to put their feet up, but curious enough to get up again and have a nosy around.
ROSE UNIACKE BAR STOOLS INVITE CONVERSATION AT THE GENEROUS KITCHEN ISLAND. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
A GUSTAVO PULITZER FINALI CHAIR SITS IN THE FRONT LIVING ROOM. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
ART AND COLLECTABLES IN A MIX OF PERIODS AND STYLES CREATE CHARACTER AND REFLECT ROMANOS’ OWN PERSONAL TASTES. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
THE ELEGANT GARDEN FEELS LIKE A NATURAL EXTENSION OF THE INSIDE SPACE, PERFECT FOR ENTERTAINING. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
LAYERS OF MIXED FABRICS IN THE BEDROOM SIT ALONGSIDE SCULPTURAL FORMS AND ANTIQUE PIECES. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
ABOVE THE ANTIQUE CHEST OF DRAWERS IN THE BEDROOM HANGS A FERNAND LÉGER GOACHE GIVEN TO HIM BY HIS PARENTS ON HIS 21ST BIRTHDAY. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
GRAPHIC WALLPAPER AND A MARBLE VANITY WITH A REEDED FRONT BRING TEXTURE, DEPTH AND WARMTH TO THE BATHROOM. IMAGE: MARC ANTHONY FOX
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