Osanna Visconti
Alga Hand-Cast Bronze Candle Holder
US$3,050
Osanna Visconti
US$3,050
By Appointment: Francis Sultana
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The Maltese-born interiors and furniture designer shares the special pieces he surrounds himself with, the piece he can’t part with and the importance of fresh towels.
Carlo Moretti
Hand-Blown Murano Glass Monolith
US$4,240
Carlo Moretti
US$4,240
NasonMoretti
Aliseo Hand-Blown Murano Glass Water Tumbler
US$122
Geoffrey Parker
Leather Cluedo Set
US$6,350
Geoffrey Parker
US$6,350
Angela Wickstead
Embroidered Linen Cocktail Napkins (Set of 6)
US$285
Sold out
Angela Wickstead
US$285
Sold out
Ifuji
Italian Hand-Carved Wood Medium Tray
US$126
Ifuji
US$126
NasonMoretti
Canova Hand-Blown Murano Glass Tumbler
US$156
Laboratorio Paravicini
Serpi Ceramic Dinner Plates (Set of 6)
US$635
Laboratorio Paravicini
US$635
Brandimarte
Hammered Sterling Silver Jug
US$1,345
Brandimarte
US$1,345
Christofle
Nomade Stainless Steel Round Tray
US$560
Christofle
US$560
Osanna Visconti
Alga Hand-Cast Bronze Candle Holder
US$945
Osanna Visconti
US$945
Linley
Marquetry Wood Playing Cards Set
US$565
Linley
US$565
What role does craft and design play in your life?
Design for me is the more critical of the two, but it’s through craft that methods of making great design are important. It’s a part of my journey as a designer to understand how craft can make a big difference in creating good designs.
How would you describe your interiors style?
My style has developed over the years. In my twenties, I was very into contemporary design, which, in a way, was cutting-edge design. As I get older, I embrace more historical interiors as I look at the past and find ways of conserving and restoring it. I’m always developing and that’s a good thing, because I get bored very fast.
What is the best craft or design gift you’ve ever received?
Sometimes the simplest of things have a very big impact. A friend recently bought me a dish-cum-phone charger by Hermès Home, which is something I would never have bought myself but it is chic and also very useful!
Osanna Visconti
Alga Hand-Cast Bronze Candle Holder
US$1,285
Osanna Visconti
US$1,285
Royal Crown Derby
Riviera Dream Hand-Painted Bone China Teacup and Saucer
US$200
Royal Crown Derby
Riviera Dream Hand-Painted Bone China Dinner Plate
US$160
Venini
Fazzoletto Hand-Blown Murano Glass Small Vase
US$395
Sold out
Venini
US$395
Sold out
Astier de Villatte
Cendrillon Teapot
US$485
Astier de Villatte
US$485
Astier de Villatte
Alexandre Teacup
US$116
Astier de Villatte
US$116
Augarten
Belvedere Hand-Painted Porcelain Dinner Plate
US$265
Bollenglass
Hand-Blown Glass Highball
US$92
Bollenglass
US$92
Osanna Visconti
Melted Hand-Cast Bronze Candle Holder
US$1,755
Osanna Visconti
US$1,755
Feldspar
Hand-Painted 24ct Gold and Bone China Espresso Mugs (Set of 4)
US$156
Astier de Villatte
Peggy Teapot
US$265
Mun Deluxe Brand Venezia
Hand-Blown Glass Lantern
US$485
Coming soon
Mun Deluxe Brand Venezia
US$485
Coming soon
Where in your home do you do your best thinking?
I put my desk in the grandest room of my London apartment so that I get to enjoy it every day. It’s a blue salon with the original William Chambers ceiling and it looks out onto the London landscape. There’s no computer as I can’t have digital things around me when I need to think; rather, books are my joy. I always tell my clients to use your nicest room where you entertain people as a room you go into yourself, otherwise you can shut the door and never go in.
What is the first and last item you bought for your home?
The first thing I ordered before moving was fresh bed linen and towels. You can’t move home, in my view, without replenishing that; it’s always the nicest thing. The last thing was new flatware. I’ve been meaning to order a simpler set of cutlery because I’m doing a new home in the countryside and there is some rejigging that I’m putting in there and leaving here.
Which item in your home brings you the most joy?
Sometimes a room brings me the most joy because I walk in and it makes me happy and secure. I think that’s the key to anyone’s home - that, and to be in love with it. Your home is something that you create around you and really is never finished; it's always about layering and making your life relative to where you are today.
What do you – or what would you like to – collect?
I’ve recently come across antiquities. It appeals to me now – Greek and Roman antiquities and especially if you juxtapose antiquities next to something contemporary. I’m fascinated by them but I know very little. I want to learn about it first, educate myself and then start collecting.
What item in your home can’t you bear to part with?
I have a chair that was designed by Emilio Terry in the late 1920s for Carlos de Beistegui’s very famous penthouse designed by Le Corbusier on the Champs Elysées. It’s profound because this was the apartment that put baroque and classical things in a minimalist setting and when I was dreaming of becoming an interior designer in my teens, seeing this apartment changed my mind completely! The chair was an obsession of mine and one day by accident it was in a shop window in Paris. When the antique dealer came back from lunch, I bought it! It’s like it was meant to come to me and it’s one of my prized possessions – not because of its value but what it means to me. I never could have believed I would stumble across it in that way.
What’s the greatest heirloom you’re most proud to pass on?
I would like to think the furniture that I have commissioned and designed with wonderful designers, including André Dubreuil and Claude Lalanne, will leave a legacy. I continue to work with artists and designers to make pieces for the homes I’m doing and my wish is that they become historically significant.
What is your go-to gift for a host?
For the people who have everything, I have to get them a good book or a small object that has to be thoughtful and useful. I love giving dishes, pairs of candlesticks, or a very chic teapot, as I enjoy giving tea paraphernalia. I always say: as long as I would live with it myself, I will give it.