Inside your homes: Justin Coakley

Documenting the high and lows of a renovation and sharing beautifully styled moments from his South London home, Justin Coakley’s Instagram feed is awash with inspiration. Featuring plenty of lush textures, bold designs and greenery - we caught up with the interior designer to see what influences his style.

Working as an interior designer, could you tell us a bit about you and what sparked your interest in interiors?

I have always had a keen interest in interiors and all things design related. From as young as 9 I can remember being intrigued by the function that design had on my life. The relationship that colour, form and function had on me from a young age definitely shaped the path that I would take into interiors.

I am particularly interested in the way a well laid out space can enhance our lives and I find great fulfilment in problem-solving a space and finding out how it can best function and serve the people that live in it.

Your beautiful home in South-West London is sophisticated and elegant – featuring lots of lush textures and greenery. How would you define your style?

I would describe my style as an eclectic mix of masculine and classic design. I don’t adhere to any specific approach, but I am drawn heavily to two styles of interiors. Minimalism, where everything has an intended place and serves a purpose and function and Mid-century modern where there is a mix of organic and geometric shapes and also where there is a strong focus on bringing the outdoors in.

I believe that our spaces should reflect our interests and personalities and for me, that means my space has to have depth and layers to it and not just be one dimensional.

You have completely renovated your home over the past few years. Did you face any particular challenges during your renovation? And where do you begin with a project like this?

I’ve spent the past four years renovating our house and started at the point that would cause the least disruption. It was important for us to live in the space for a bit before deciding on how the space would best function and work for us. This meant doing the first floor as we lived downstairs in the house whilst the renovation was being carried out upstairs.

Uncovering poor DIY and discovering that a vital steel support had been removed without consulting a structural engineer prior to us purchasing the house was one of the biggest challenges that I faced. The lesson that I learnt is some things are best left to the professionals.

When choosing timeless furniture for your home, what qualities do you look for?

Quality and craftsmanship are key to me when choosing furniture and items for my home. I am drawn to items that have a pared-back design but are also able to create visual interest and be a talking point.

After curating your home, how does the space and living within it make you feel?

My home feels warm and inviting. It’s a calm and relaxing space that we can retreat to at the end of each day. The way I have designed it means that the space serves a function and caters perfectly for all our needs. For us it’s the ultimate in comfort, we feel so at home that we never want to leave.

Do you have any interior designer tips that never fail to guide you when creating your interiors?

It’s important to know your own personal sense of style and what design aesthetic appeals to you. For me design and layout are as important as the furniture and objects that occupy the space, both elements should be considered before embarking on designing a space.

Playing with the scale and proportion is key to a considered space and will allow the room to flow better. For instance, I would avoid over cluttering a space with lots of smaller items and would rather save up and spend on a few key pieces that really speak to the overall design and create visual impact, then add in my smaller items of interest.

Another thing that often gets overlooked is lighting. A room should always have more than one light source. Think layered illumination: Every room should have a mix of lighting, including overhead, accent and task lighting.

We know that your garden is also admired by many on Instagram, what were your intentions when creating your outdoor space?

Myself and my partner love the outdoors and we wanted to create a space that would be multifunctional and be an extension of our home. It was important for us to also be able to use the space throughout the seasons, and somewhere where we could relax and entertain in the warmer months.

Creating an outdoor space that would serve all these functions was important to us and I also wanted the garden to house my studio and be directly connected to nature as I draw a lot of my inspiration from the outdoors.

We’ve all found ourselves really appreciating our outdoor spaces over the past year, do you have any tips on creating a garden that works for you?

I think the main thing when creating a garden is to look at how you want to utilise the space. Zoning is imperative to a good layout in a garden. Having spaces that are divided into different functions allows the space to flow better. For instance, a place to cook, a place to eat and a place to relax.

With our garden, I zoned it into spaces that could be used for these functions first and then created raised beds and areas of interest to divide the space. Height is also a key factor to take into account when designing a garden, make sure you have different heights as this will add dimension to the area.

What’s your go-to place for inspiration? Are there any people, places or brands that never fail to inspire you?

I am heavily inspired by nature. The colours, textures and patterns that it presents us with never fail to inspire and get my creative juices flowing.

I am also inspired by designers like Robert Stilin that use strong, clean lines and mixes one-of-a-kind pieces with design statement pieces within his designs. His designs are always attuned to the characters of its homeowners and are not just an ode to a specific style but reflect depth and meaning within the space.

When it comes to brands there are too many to mention but I have always been particularly inspired by Vitra, so many iconic designers’ furniture is produced by them and they have been a go-to for years.

Like so many of us in the past year - we’ve heard you work from home. Have you faced any challenges whilst working from home? And how do you cope with these?

I was working from home prior to the lockdown, so when lockdown happened, I already had a routine in place. Making sure that I have a good Wi-Fi signal and a designated space that I can go to get work done has been key. My garden studio is set away from the house so that in itself is a good thing, as it forces me to leave the house and be in a space that I can switch off from everyday distractions like the TV and kitchen and focus on the tasks at hand.

Do you have an inspirational interior? Share your home with us over Instagram by tagging us @nest_co_uk. Looking for your own piece of forever furniture? Browse Nest today to discover thousands of everlasting designs.