Valerie Wade offers unique mid-20th Century French, Italian and American furniture, lighting, mirrors and objets d’art, interspersed with eclectic, sometimes quirky items that have caught her eye on her frequent travels around the world. Valerie, a former fashion editor of the Sunday Times Magazine, has refined taste in beautiful, one-off items for the home.
The shop, located on the corner of Fulham Road and Onslow Gardens in the heart of the fashionable 'Chelsea Cross' design destination, has attracted a brisk footfall and a loyal customer following for the past quarter-century, while Valerie's tastes appeal to a growing international cross-section of interior designers and clients, including celebrities. The shop windows are famous for their ever-changing displays of vintage, contemporary and bespoke furniture, lighting and objets d’art.
“I only buy items for my shop that I would have in my own home. My focus is very much driven by fashion,” Valerie says. “I can never say what the next trend will be, but something imperceptible in the ether affects what I buy.”
Valerie Wade Design includes contemporary mirrored dressing tables handcrafted in England, Art Deco lighting by French designers, and Syrian cabinets inlaid with mother-of-pearl, alongside modern and contemporary French, Italian and American art and photographs.
Nothing here is predictable: Hollywood glamour is combined with classic mid-century Modernism, Art Deco, and globally-sourced contemporary pieces. Valerie’s selection of vintage and contemporary lighting ranges from breathtaking chandeliers to her signature Lotus lights, which dazzle both as individual pieces or grouped together as an art installation.
“Lighting is the make-or-break element for any interior,” she says.
“It can kill or enhance any space – not to mention whoever occupies that
space.”
Valerie’s enthusiasm for finding vintage mirrored furniture (especially dressing tables) for the luxurious living room or bedroom has extended to producing custom-made pieces, which can be adapted to the client's specifications.