How Studio RL Designs an August Home: From Brief to Handover

Every home in an August Collection is renovated and designed by Studio RL (Studio RioLondon), August's in-house design studio – a team of more than twenty-five architects, interior designers and art consultants based in London. Their job starts long before a home is ready to visit: restoring the original character, carefully choosing the new additions, and furnishing every room down to the last detail. Here's what that process looks like, from the first walk-through to the day a home is ready for its first stay. That is one of the main pillars of August’s Private Collection membership – members hold a share in a Collection of exquisite homes in different corners of Europe. 

In this article:

• How a home's design brief comes together, before renovation starts.
• How Studio RL balances restoration with modern comfort.
• How each home is furnished and finished, room by room.
• What happens once a home is ready to hand over. 

No two homes in a Collection start from the same place. Many of them are off-market finds – one might be a stone farmhouse; another, a city apartment with its original details buried under someone else's renovation. What they share is that they both carry a story and a distinct character. And they both need a single design team to see the project through from start to finish with the conviction that a home's history is worth restoring, not replacing. 

How does a home's design brief come together? 

Before any renovation begins, Studio RL spends time simply understanding a home – its architecture, its history, and the character already built into its walls – what's been added or altered since it was built, often layer by layer. The team aims to keep as much of the original structure as possible, treating the home’s authentic character as the starting point for the brief rather than something to design around. The brief that comes out of this stage isn't a fixed style guide – it's a plan for how much of a home's own personality to preserve, and where modern comfort needs to be added without taking away from the home’s authenticity – a Cotswolds cottage calls for a different set of decisions than a Mallorcan finca or a Riviera villa. 

How does Studio RL balance restoration with modern comfort? 

Restoration and renovation happen at the same time. Original details – exposed beams, stone floors built by hand, a fireplace that has stood the test of time – are repaired rather than replaced. Those are the kind of features a hasty renovation would strip out rather than emphasise and celebrate. Modern additions – underfloor heating, updated plumbing, better insulation – are worked in so they complement the existing structure and are felt as improvements rather than demanding attention. Local materials and traditional craft techniques are carried through where possible to make sure the home belongs to its region – a farm in Tuscany still feels unmistakably Tuscan once the work is finished, rather than looking like it could be anywhere. 

How is each home furnished and finished?

Furnishing comes last, once the architecture and renovation are settled. Studio RL works from the finished floor plan to choose a palette and material story that suits the home and its setting – the same instinct that decides whether a room calls for linen or something heavier, whether the light needs framing or simply letting in. Furniture, art and finishing pieces are sourced individually rather than ordered as a set – some commissioned from local makers, some found through markets and dealers in the region – so a home ends up furnished the way a considered collector would furnish it, not as a predictable piece in a catalogue.

What happens once a home is ready to hand over?

Once furnishing is complete, a home is checked room by room before it's considered ready – every material, every finish, every piece exactly as intended, so the home feels lived-in. From there, it passes to the homeowner experience team, who take over the day-to-day care of the home for every holiday that follows – housekeeping, maintenance, and the details that make each arrival feel effortless. Most homes are ready for their first stay within three to six months of being acquired, depending on the scope of the renovation – the end of one process, and the beginning of the part that makes it worth the wait for members. 

But the relationship with Studio RL doesn't end there: any future changes or updates to a home go back through the same studio, so a home never ends up with the patchwork look of one designer's work layered over another's. For members, that means that what they see on their first stay is the same thoughtfully considered, single-vision design they'll return to on every stay after – not something that drifts further from the original brief with each passing year.

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FAQ:

How are August homes renovated and designed?

Every home in an August Collection is renovated and designed by Studio RL, a London-based design studio of more than twenty-five architects, interior designers and art consultants. The process starts with understanding a property's original character, then moves through restoration, modern updates and a full furnishing scheme – restoring what's worth keeping and adding comfort without losing what made the home distinctive in the first place. 

What makes an August home's design bespoke? 

Each home is designed individually rather than furnished from a set list – Studio RL sources furniture, art and finishing pieces specific to that property and its region, and restores original architectural details rather than replacing them. No two homes in a Collection are designed the same way. 

What happens to a home's design after the renovation is finished? 

The home is handed over to a dedicated homeowner experience team for day-to-day care, but Studio RL remains involved for any future changes, so every home keeps a single, consistent design vision.

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