NOTES ON ENGLISH INTERIORS

Interiors shaped by time and use

The De Rosee Sa director explains how light, architecture and restraint create spaces that feel as though they’ve always been there.

An arched wooden door with glass panes opens to a hallway with black-and-white checkered floor tiles, a wooden bench, and abstract art on the wall. The space has soft, neutral tones and elegant architectural details.

Claire Sá

Director, De Rosee Sa

April 26, 2026 | 4 min read

When a project is finished, the question I always ask myself is: Does this feel like it could have been this way forever? If you can’t tell which era it is from, that is a success. This way of working sits at the heart of our interiors at De Rosee Sa. Interiors are a process, something obsessively researched: we are always considering how a space, whether a period property or new, will evolve; how it will absorb new pieces, accommodate change, and reflect the lives lived within it.

“When I finish a project, the question I always ask myself is: does this feel like it could have been this way forever?”

Claire Sá, Director, De Rosee Sa

A stylish kitchen and dining area with a marble island, a round wooden table with dark chairs, a brown cushioned bench, wall art, large windows, and light cabinets with flowers in a vase. — The timeless kitchen in a Hampstead pied-à-terre by De Rosee Sa. Photography: Michael Sinclair

Read the light first

When we decorate homes, I first think of them architecturally. Even if you can’t necessarily move walls around or radically reshape a space, there are always architectural moves you can make to enhance what’s there. This can mean aligning doorways with windows to direct light into the middle of the floor plan; a small move, but one that changes how the whole space feels.

A bright kitchen with marble countertops and backsplash, a double farmhouse sink, and beige cabinets. A vase of white flowers and a wooden cutting board sit beside the sink under a large window. — A play of light draws light and shadow into the kitchen and master bedroom. Photography: Michael Sinclair

A cozy bedroom with a gray upholstered bed, wooden nightstand with a lamp and plant, and an arched doorway leading to a hallway with wooden floors and neutral walls. — A play of light draws light and shadow into the kitchen and master bedroom. Photography: Michael Sinclair

“When we decorate homes, I first think of them architecturally. There are always architectural moves you can make to enhance what’s there.”

Claire Sá, Director, De Rosee Sa

Different aspects mean you have a variety of light across the day and across the floor plan. But there are in-between spaces – corridors, transitional areas – that tend to always be darker. I like to commit to colour and, in these cases, paint them deeper and richer; suddenly they have atmosphere and intention. Then the south-facing rooms, flooded with light throughout the day, we will treat in a lighter, brighter way.

The life of a room

A home needs to be lived in. You need to be able to make a mess of it, tidy it up, bring friends around, and add to it over time – and, of course, grow with it as a family. What I aim for is something with enough margin to manoeuvre: materials chosen for their tactile and robust qualities; not precious, and not something you’re going to worry about.

A cozy living room corner with a white armchair, patterned cushion, standing lamp, small side table with books, and built-in red shelves filled with books and decorative items beside a TV. — A mix of pieces sit comfortably across their Hampstead pied-à-terre. Photography: Michael Sinclair

A wooden sideboard with books, a black lamp, candlesticks, and a bowl sits against a beige wall. Above it hangs a yellow and black artwork featuring cranes and flowers. Part of a bed with a blanket is visible in the foreground. — A mix of pieces sit comfortably across their Hampstead pied-à-terre. Photography: Michael Sinclair

“A home needs to be lived in. You need to be able to make a mess of it, tidy it up, bring friends around, and add to it over time.”

Claire Sá, Director, De Rosee Sa

If you commit too completely to one era, it can be a bit static and you don’t really have anywhere to go – no room for the antique piece you might have inherited, or equally the contemporary artwork you fall in love with years later. Practicality is very important. I think you’ve got to believe that design can fundamentally sit with, and enhance, the way you live.

Aimee Betts

Ricasso Floor Lamp

£3,950

A framed textile features two red geometric flowers at the top and four green leafy shapes below, all on a beige woven background, displayed on a wall with soft lighting.

Pelican House

Folkloric Kilim VI

£876

A modern cream-colored sofa with a skirted base, rounded arms, and two striped gray throw pillows, set against a matching neutral background.

De Rosee Sa

Crescent Sofa

£5,613

Two wooden stools with hexagonal tops and bases stand side by side on a light wood floor against a plain, light-colored wall. One stool is light wood, the other is darker wood.

Galvin Brothers

Octagon Side Table

£410

Let the architecture sing

The details I care most about are probably not those one would consciously notice. Sometimes that means adding wide architraves around the windows and doorways where previously there wasn’t much. The minute you add an architrave, a bit of moulding, something shifts. It’s hard to say exactly what, but the room feels more considered and permanent. We often add texture to a ceiling too. It is not a necessity, but it gives a point of interest that you’d miss if it weren’t there.

“In English interiors if you’ve got wonderful mouldings or cornices, you can, in some ways, not do much else. You can let the architecture sing.”

Claire Sá, Director, De Rosee Sa

A softly lit corner of a room with beige walls, a closed white door, a small round upholstered stool, and a dark wooden table topped with a small lamp, casting a warm, cozy glow. — Painted in a soft, tonal palette, the mouldings recede into the fabric of the room. Photography: Michael Sinclair

A softly lit hallway with cream-colored walls, an arched doorway, and geometric black-and-white floor tiles. At the end of the hall, a wooden chair sits near a windowed door letting in natural light. — Painted in a soft, tonal palette, the mouldings recede into the fabric of the room. Photography: Michael Sinclair

Architraves are inexpensive. Paint is inexpensive. The French have always understood this, their boiserie, the incredible commitment to wood, moulding and panelling. The great English country houses have it in their bones. There are lessons in all of those traditions about what it means to commit to the longevity of a building. If you’ve got wonderful mouldings or cornices, you can, in some ways, not do much else. You can let the architecture sing.