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Exploring Home.

Culture. Identity

I talk about interiors, but decorating is only the beginning.

Rethinking the home as a space for joy, community, nature and ancestral connection - one room at a time.

Published by the Royal Institute of British Architects. September 2026

BLACK INTERIORS AND ARCHITECTURE ACROSS CONTINENTS AND CENTURIES

House Proud

Every home tells a story. House Proud is a richly illustrated celebration of how Black homes tell one of humanity's most enduring and sophisticated design stories, a story of life rooted in nature, community, joy and the sacred.

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Welcome to my home, Cottage Noir

A bedroom with blue walls, a white fireplace, and a window with blue curtains. There are green plants near the fireplace, a blue and purple bedspread, and various decorative items including a bust sculpture and framed photo.
A decorated interior room with a patterned light wood dresser holding art, books, and decorative objects, against a wallpapered wall with houses and trees, featuring a round mirror and a vase with flowers.
Six framed portrait artwork of women with various hairstyles and accessories, hung on a gray marble wall, partially obscured by green plants at the bottom of the image.
Text that reads 'Artistic Digest' in a stylised font on a black background.

A space for thinking deeply about home

The Afri-tectural Digest is the resource I wish I had when I was decorating my London home in a way that centred my Nigerian and Jamaican heritage, and the conversation I sought when I realised that mainstream interiors media had little to say about the Black home beyond absence, stereotype, or excess.

If you are interested in how home carries culture, this Substack is for you.

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Interior view of a living room with a woman sitting on a patterned beige sofa, smiling. The room has a green textured wall decorated with African-inspired artwork, a bookshelf filled with books, and various decorative items. A dark fireplace mantel, a lamp, a vase with pink flowers, and a chess set on a wooden table are also visible. The floor has a patterned rug, and there are additional decorative pillows on the sofa.

Shop Cottage Noir Style

My edit of The Cornrow products, which I have and enjoy at Cottage Noir

A bronze bust of a woman wearing a headwrap and large hoop earrings, with a necklace, set against a plain background.

Sade Bust

A decorative candle holder with a pink, black, green, and gold pattern. The phrase 'FINE GIRL' is prominently displayed in bold black letters in the center.

Fine Girl Candle

A portrait of a Black woman sitting on an elegant vintage chair, wearing a white dress and necklace, with a serious expression. Behind her is a framed artwork that reads 'UP TO NO GOOD' with stylised eyes.

Lady Congo Art Print

Discover The Cornrow
Poster depicting a large historic ship named Empire Windrush with black smoke coming from its yellow smokestacks, celebrating 70 years of building Britain.

Windrush Generation Tea Towel

Rethinking Home as Culture, Joy, & Ancestral Intelligence. Follow along @CottageNoir

I turned the black canvas I saw in Cottage Noir when we first moved in into an interior design expression of "Black Girl Magic.” I have two daughters, and my intention was to create a childhood home where they could flourish. It turned int
May was a whirlwind! From hunting for treasures at antique fairs to tending the garden as wisteria season wrapped up, it's been a month of discoveries, moments and memories. So, here is from my notes, to you, what I got up to in the merry month of Ma