Last year was a busy one for David Collins. Despite the UK's unfavourable economic climate, he and his studio served up elegant interiors for an array of restaurants in quick succession, including Massimo, The Gilbert Scott and The Delaunay. With all receiving rave reviews, both for their dishes and for their decor, it is no wonder Collins is considered a luminary within his field, a modern-day Midas armed with little more than a mood board. "I believe the secret to doing well in this business is knowing the projects to say no to," Collins says - although his busy diary for 2012 would suggest otherwise. This spring sees his relaunch of the St James's Restaurant at Fortnum & Mason, neatly timed to coincide with the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. And, just a stone's throw away, the Connaught Hotel is still exuding a freshly painted glow courtesy of Collins and his work on its penthouse.
A favourite of the well-heeled since it opened in 1897, the Connaught Hotel has long ushered a stream of celebrities through its doors - from the Duke of Connaught, after whom it was named, to Grace Kelly and Sean Connery. Numerous other stars have also sought solace within its discreet four walls and now a Dh412 million makeover has propelled the property into the 21st century. Redesigning the penthouse of such an iconic address - one with a prolific heritage and glamorous clientele - must have been a daunting process. "When putting together the design for the apartment, I imagined that I was creating the home of a worldly and sensitive collector," Collins explains - a task that can't have been too taxing given his own tasteful predispositions and love of music, cinema and books.
He confesses that the design process became a personal one and that he ended up visualising himself as the prospective resident and adapted the apartment to his own standards of living - even going so far as to draw from his personal music and art collections. The result is a Mayfair refuge in shades of David Collins' signature sophistication, an astoundingly pretty example of craftsmanship by the man whose definition of luxury is "not an excess nor a lack of anything but the correct balance of comfort, elegance and indulgence".
As with each of David Collins Studio's projects, quality is key. "Materials, like us, change and adapt with time, so you need to ensure the prime materials you use will improve with age rather than simply deteriorate." Thus in the living room, drapes in dip-dyed silk frame the expansive views of London's skyline, their fluidity juxtaposed by a richly veined and sharply angular marble fireplace. Limited-edition and original tomes peer down from library shelves while a plaster chandelier by Philippe Anthonioz presides over a weighty bronze coffee table. The dining room, an intimate space for eight catered for by Michelin-starred Chef Hélène Darroze, moonlights as an art gallery, with pieces curated by Collins breathing life into each of its walls.
Concealed within the master dressing room, wardrobes lined with butter-soft leather stand to attention, while a Collins-designed dressing table awaits, replete with Guerlain products. "I believe in attention to detail, not just with the way things look but the way they're experienced," Collins says, which may explain his signature colour blocking - another Collins touch that has a markedly soothing effect. "Colour is emotional to me, it is my response to a location, to a mood, to a look; I imagine colour as the way people will eventually feel in my designs, and not just part of a palette." In varying hues of blue, lavender, lilac and pewter, the apartment feels less like a hotel and more like a private home with all the amenities of a world class resort.
