Blenheim Crescent W11

Mid-century modern style by designer Fran Hickman lends an inviting feel to this three-bedroom maisonette.

With its sleek, jet-black façade, this Notting Hill maisonette is hard to miss along Blenheim Crescent’s row of shopfronts. But step inside and it’s the considered details and understated finishes that capture attention. A blue plaque outside commemorates the building’s unique heritage as a safe haven for newly arrived Caribbean British citizens in the 1950s. Fast forward to the present day and interior designer Fran Hickman has written a new chapter in its history. With its own entrance and unfolding across two floors, this contemporary maisonette has been completely reimagined through a minimalist lens.

Seamless functionality plays out across the first floor, which is divided between an open-plan kitchen, dining and reception room towards the front and a courtyard, bathroom and guest bedroom at the back. The espresso-toned kitchen grounds the space, with chef-grade appliances integrated into sleek stone worktops. Darker accents, including a floating black staircase with a curved metal balustrade, pop against the warm white walls, adding a cinematic effect.

There’s an elevated feel to the guest bedroom; a skylight and glass door to the courtyard let soft light diffuse through the space while the bathroom next door is finished in dusty pink and Carrara marble. A neutral colour palette and pale wooden floors create a calming backdrop in the principal bedroom on the floor above. A rich wood-clad dressing room separates the space from its en suite, which comes with an oval freestanding bath. Also on this floor, a third light-filled bedroom that would make an ideal home office. From here, a set of doors opens onto a paved south-facing terrace, framed with fencing and plants that add a layer of privacy.