Divine design: Georgia Langridge
Award-winning Christchurch interior designer Georgia Langridge is behind many of the region’s sleek, luxury bathrooms and kitchens. She talks design with Metropol Editor Lynda Papesch.
From a young age, Georgia was exposed to the importance of how a home’s interior should feel, fuelling her move into the design field. “My mum, and even her mum, are very house proud and have a really great natural eye for styling homes and excellent taste. It became a natural progression for me,” she explains.
That progression led Georgia to the Design and Arts College of New Zealand, and currently to Modi Design where she is designer/director. Early in September her skills came to national attention when she won the Supreme Bathroom Award, plus three others at the annual National Kitchen and Bathroom Association awards. Her top ensuite bathroom entry, titled ‘Parisian Stay’, was praised by the judges for its unique features, stunning materials and tones. “This designer has a very good understanding of bathroom design, they know how to define a space and we applaud the technical design. One particularly successful aspect is the way the space allows for communication and solitude; the zones are separate and at the same time connected, which allows for varying degrees of privacy,” reported the judging panel.
Georgia says the homeowner requested that the ensuite feel light and bright, while also moody in the evening. “They wanted a large double shower with a dumper and a bidet toilet, in addition to a ‘his and hers’ vanity with a good amount of storage. To create both moods of light and bright during the day and moody in the evening, I worked with natural and artificial light,” she says. A showstopper element of the ensuite is the shower, designed in a decorative glass enclosure. The bottom of the glass detail is an etched fabric-look print which provides some privacy and ease for cleaning. The top of the glass is clear to flood natural light into the space.
Bathrooms may appear simple, however they are challenging spaces to get right, with many design pitfalls. The awards judges looked at various aspects of each entry, including the placement of the toilet, how the tiles are lined up, whether the lighting is to code, and that the space is aesthetically pleasing and inviting. Bathrooms and kitchens are just one aspect of Georgia’s work. “We actually provide a full interior service where we cover everything within the interior envelope, from as small as wall colours and material selections, through to full bespoke furniture, kitchen and bathroom designs,” she says.
Much of her inspiration comes from working collaboratively, as a design team. “We’re constantly sound-boarding off each other,” she explains, speaking of the Modi team. “No project is solely one designer’s work, and I think that’s a real bonus to the end result of a design; it makes our designs really well rounded and considered in all aspects.”
Georgia admits to having become increasingly “obsessed with practicality, and how people live”, diving deep to assess from all angles. “It’s so much deeper than how it looks. There are the ergonomics, and how people entertain, for example. I find that really inspiring as the base level to design from.” From an aesthetic perspective, Georgia gains inspiration from travel and nature, as well as her individual clients, and their architects.
Her advice to those wanting a career in interior design is to “to work hard and love it”. “Be open to pivoting, but also push as hard as you can to get into the field or specific area you want to get into, whether it be kitchen design, more on the furnishing side, or the whole interior envelope whether it permits financially. Do work experience to get a shoe in the door,” she adds.
These days, Georgia’s door is Modi’s new studio and showroom in Victoria Street, although when not there she may be found with her nose in a book, reading, and spending quality time with soon-to-be husband Blair, and their dog.
CURRENT BATHROOM TRENDS
- Deeper, more rich timbers being used
- Tiles with texture, whether a visual texture or a rippled 3D tile (generally in areas such as showers, that don’t require a lot of cleaning)
- Slightly heavier pieces, such as vanities, with more storage; less minimalism than we’ve been seeing, thank goodness
- A lot of deep dark bronze tapware coming through; whether that really takes off in New Zealand, we’ll see.
