House Tour: Inside Kemide Lawson’s Eclectic Cottage In London | House Beautiful

Video Description

Kemi Lawson, founder of homeware and lifestyle site The Cornrow, has opened the doors to her beautiful family home affectionately called Cottage Noir, which is a listed cottage on the outskirts of London. Kemi has designed a colourful, characterful, and eclectic home that is reflective of her dual Nigerian and Jamaican heritage, alongside representations of Black womanhood. The property has a rich history: it was actually two cottages built around the 1760s that were converted into one family home, and it had a former life as a baker’s cottage. With colour and pattern at every corner, Kemi has used each room as a canvas to curate and display items that celebrate her African and Caribbean heritage. The hallway is warm and welcoming with a house-printed wallpaper designed in Haiti, framed artwork and family photos hung as a gallery wall, an upholstered storage bench covered in traditional adire Nigerian fabric, and a quirky window offering a room with a view. In the living room, Kemi shows us some of her most treasured ornaments that celebrate her culture, including a flea market find in Paris. Kemi has used textiles to tell powerful stories too. In her cosy dining room, she's framed a scarf on the wall to create visual interest, which is now one of the focal points of the room. We also see the fairytale-like bedroom of Kemi’s youngest daughter, which features a little nook that is now a custom princess bed with curtains, a mattress wall mural, and a layering of cushions. Watch the video above to tour the rest of Kemi’s beautiful home. To learn more about the African diaspora and the meaning of home, follow Kemide on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/cottagenoir/?hl=en or explore her Substack, Afri-tectural Digest https://cottagenoir.substack.com/. Kemide’s upcoming book, The Black Home, will be published by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and is set for release in summer 2026. Shot by Victoria Hutton Houses Editor Daisy Bendall Producer Charlie Hedges For more homes and interior design inspo, head to our website: https://www.housebeautiful.com/uk/ House Beautiful has everything you need to turn your house into the home you've always dreamed of. Follow us on: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/housebeautifuluk Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/HouseBeautifulUK Twitter - https://twitter.com/hb