Can one go in for a bit of nostalgia while avoiding naffness? A glance at the knick-knacks on Duncan Campbell’s mantelpiece suggests so. Here, treasured mementos collected on holiday with his husband, design darling Luke Edward Hall, vie for attention with the trompe-l’oeil decorations they’ve recently zuzhed up their London pad with.
Duncan, as one half of creative consultancy and design partnership Campbell-Rey, knows a thing or two about zuzhing up – it’s why we asked him to be a founding member of our Guild of creatives and thinkers. That his wardrobe is so natty, as you’ll learn, comes as no surprise – but perhaps his clumsiness in the kitchen might. Read on to discover the details of Duncan’s domestic set-up, taking in lethal liqueurs, a fizz-filled fridge and the verdant veg patch of their country bolthole. Supper at Casa Campbell? Count us in.
My most recent home improvement…
Bookshelves. I never seem to have enough, so if an alcove hangs around long enough it will be turned into a bookshelf. We also recently got into tromp l’oeil in a big way in our flat in London, working with the talented decorative artist Magda Gordon to create a mural and lots of faux-marble in the tiny hallway. She also painted some faux porphyry urns in our kitchen and transformed a couple of doors into a pair of shell niches, complete with an urn and a bust of Antinous, the Greek youth beloved of Hadrian.
The latest addition to my wardrobe…
Luke and I got married at the end of May in our garden, so I had a couple of suits made for the occasion. One was from Giuliva Heritage in Rome, using a 1930 fabric in a great pistachio colour; the other was a deep-blue tuxedo made by Drake’s, in a loose weave with grosgrain on the lapels.
