Marylebone Lane | Morrow + Lorraine Architects

Situated within the Harley Street Conservation Area, Morrow+Lorraine has completed the Category A refurbishment of 114-116 Marylebone Lane for the Howard de Walden Estate.

The building has been converted from a D1 Non-residential institution, that until recently served as the Cordon Blue cookery school, into a B1 self-contained, Grade A office building.

The new layout maximises the floor to ceiling height, and creates a clean, open floor plate with a net internal area of approximately 150sqm on each floor. The building has been designed as a flexible and social space, with free-flowing circulation unimpeded by lobbies. The use of high quality architectural lighting brings out the quality of the finishes and helps to create a sense of luxury and refinement.

Julian Morrow, Director of Morrow+Lorraine, said; ‘The building frontage had been badly altered in the past and we wanted to recreate the elegance of the original façade which was achieved using a combination of glazed bricks, bespoke joinery and new steel windows. Internally the aim was to reveal as much of the original building fabric as possible by stripping back finishes and exposing the steel columns. Glazed Crittall partitions and a new, pared-down steel staircase complement the steel frame and façade glazing.’

Acting as a focal point for the renovated reception area is a unique polished concrete desk; designed by Morrow+Lorraine and constructed by Lowinfo Design. The desk comprises of a 15mm thick glass reinforced concrete shell with bull-nosed edging and features a leather desk inlay, completed with brass edging; bringing a traditional touch to an otherwise contemporary design.

Tom Bowman, Director at Lowinfo Design said; “It’s the most complicated single cast we have made to date. The manufacturing process evolved during the project and we were really pushing the boundaries of the material. It was well worth it…the result is fantastic!”